


Hurts to be Human

by QualityGamerMama



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Anxiety, BDSM, Date Rape Drug/Roofies, Depression, Drama, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Food Porn, Getting over abuse, Getting to Know Each Other, Healthy Relationships, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Light BDSM, Multi, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Single Parents, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:15:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 13
Words: 39,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23885836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QualityGamerMama/pseuds/QualityGamerMama
Summary: She moved from Kalos to Alola to get out of the limelight and leave behind bad memories. But no matter where you go, bad memories will be made. Maybe some may not be so bad, just bitter sweet.
Relationships: Guzma (Pokemon)/Original Female Character(s), Guzma/Lusamine (Pokemon), Guzma/Original Pokemon Trainer(s)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 20





	1. Sleepwalking

Maybe it was just a nightmare that lasted way too long. Maybe she was just sleepwalking the entire time. She liked to think that, but sadly the sun of a new day crawled into the window of her new home in Alola. 

Marie groaned as the light danced across her face, pulling the covers over herself and her daughter. The tiny 8-year-old just curled into her mother, fast asleep from the jet lag she was experiencing. Poor little one, who had just experienced her first big trip. Well, perhaps...Marie thought it was best if she were to sleep a little while longer. 

She crawled out of the futon bed, stretching and cracking her back. Moving from room to room, she eyeballed the stacks of boxes that signified the incoming days that would be filled with unpacking and rearranging. Perhaps some money spent on new things they needed. Room darkening curtains being the first item on the list, of course. She had already purchased some since she did some researching on Alola before moving here. But she feared she hadn’t adequately prepared for the amount of curtains she needed for the new house. 

Thankfully, she had the sense to at least install the coffee machine the night before. She waded out into the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. A soft purr came from the bed, and followed her out into the hall. “Yes, yes. I know. You want your kibble.” Marie chuckled, placing down a disposable bowl for now and opening a newly purchased box of Pokemon kibble. She received a mewl from her companion, and a brush of soft fur against her leg. 

She managed to make herself a cup of coffee, and grabbed yesterday’s paper which was laying on her kitchen island. Adding creamer, she browsed through the words on the front back for a moment. An earthquake on one of the smaller islands, no one was hurt….The section of new Alola trainers….Those who finished the trials….

Nothing of interest to her just yet. That was fine. She moved to Alola to escape the limelight, after all. 

There was another purr beside her legs, and eventually her pokemon jumped up on the counter. An off-colored Sylveon, or what the trainers called a “shiny” pokemon. The old creature just stared at her with big pink eyes, mewling. “Good morning to you too, Mr Grump”, She teased, scratching the creature’s head. “We have a long day ahead of us… Should we get started?” 

The Sylveon mewled at her, pawing at the bag on the counter that carried the pokeballs. “Fine, fine.” Marie chuckled, tying her two-toned hair up. White bangs that framed her face, a few of the longer strands being pulled back into the black back in the messy half-assed bun. The baggy grey pants hung around her hips loosely, her pale pink tank top clinging tightly to her torso. She felt her eyes focusing finally due to her morning intake of coffee, the red-toned pupils scanning the contents of the messenger bag for the other five pokeballs. She laid the balls, each a different color, in a row. Sylveon liked to let his friends out, which made him feel special and helpful. 

Tap, tap, tap. Each one of the balls were pawed at by the old Pokemon, and each of the released friends stretched and grunted their thanks to him as was their custom. First, a Gengar, who snickered his thanks like he just had a funny joke. He waddled up to his trainer, hugging her knees. “I slept okay”, She promised, patting his head. “But you can stay out tonight. I’ll need to catch up anyways.” 

The next pokemon was her Audino, which cooed at her softly before grabbing some of the fresh fruit off the table and munching softly. The pink and cream colored pokemon yawned, twitching its ears to the sound down the hall. Abigail must’ve been waking up…

Good thing too, because Herdier was next to come out. The loyal dog-like pokemon barked, ran around in circles, then down the hall to undoubtedly jump on the futon and give the small child kisses as a good morning wake up call. Marie laughed when she heard her daughter start to giggle, and the Herdier came down the hall dragging the blanket with him. “Good job.” Marie laughed, seeing the creature wag its tail before dropping the blanket and helping itself to some kibble. 

“Mama!”, Abigail called, walking down the hall. “Mama, Herdier took my blanket!” 

“I know.” Marie replied, kneeling down to hug her child. Large blue eyes stared at her with sleep still diluting them. Black hair pulled into twin pigtails that needed brushing after all the tossing and turning at night. “You should get changed and get ready to help me to unpack. We’re going to town for breakfast first. The pokemon are going to stay here and stretch. Is that okay?” 

“Can we bring Herdier?”, Abigail pleaded. “Please, mama?” 

The small woman sighed, but nodded. Herdier, who was their emotional support pokemon, could sometimes get too aggressive with locals if either one of them had an episode. But that was back in Kalos… Maybe here in Alola it wouldn’t be so bad. 

Abigail ran down the hall to what was her room, and Marie heard her shuffling through the boxes. One of the other pokeballs finally released its creature, and a large Machamp stood tall and proud. He stretched his muscles, keeping one eye on his master. “Ah, good. Machamp, can you go through the boxes and find the curtains, please? I’d like to put them up this afternoon.” 

A grunt of approval came from the rock pokemon, and Marie grabbed the final ball before Sylveon could let them out. She pocketed the Teddiursa, just in case she needed something to defend herself with. Yes, it was a small pokemon, but she had avoided leveling it up for the reason that it was small and dangerous with the right knowledge and moves. 

She moved to her bedroom, getting changed into a brown long skirt with a cream colored peasant blouse. Simple, nothing too flashy, and easy to move around in. Not to mention the fabric was light and flowing, easily ventilating her body. 

Abigail dressed herself in a pair of overall shorts and a simple white and pink stripe shirt. Once their hair had been fixed, Marie left her pokemon in charge of her home and brought Herdier along with them. She carried a couple of reusable bags, since Alola was big into reducing and recycling. 

The fresh sea air was much nicer than the stench of Luminose city. The trip to town wasn’t bad, but Marie figured she and Abigail would need to get bikes. There were barely any cars, and the ones that were around were electric and low-carbon monoxide. Which was fine, to her. Abigail was of the age where she could learn how to ride a bike and she could use the extra exercise. 

Hau’oli City was large, but not as big as she feared. For that, she was thankful. Herdier was sniffing anything he could get close to, but never straying too far from his trainer. Abigail was excited by the new sights and smells, and found a small shop on the beachfront. “Mom!”, Abigail tugged at her mom’s hand, dragging her towards the sweet-smelling shop. Marie looked over the stall, which was run by a plump woman with a gorgeous tan and brown hair adorned with flowers. “Oh wow, doughnuts!” 

“Malasada”, the woman chuckled, correcting Abigail. “Are you tourists?” 

“Oh, no. We just moved here last night.” Marie explained, browsing over the treats. Round deep fried pastries stuffed with various custard and jelly condiments.This was what she came for, to learn new pastries of the islands and to have a better life. A cultural exchange, since many Kalos natives took vacations to the Alola islands. She could provide some comfort to the tourists who were experiencing a culture shock and wanted a taste of home, and in return she’d learn of the Alola pasties and baking techniques. 

“Oh, well! Alola!” the woman laughed. 

“I’m sorry?” Marie inquired. 

“Oh! That’s the native greeting”, The woman explained, pulling out a brown bag. “Can I interest you in a couple of these? I’ll discount a bakers dozen if you’d like.” 

“That would be perfect, thank you”, Marie replied, pulling out her wallet and handing over a few dollars to the fellow baker. “Can you give me some tips about where to grocery shop from?” 

“Oh, of course!”, the woman smiled, placing a selected variation of doughnuts into the bag. “My husband runs one of the vegetable stands in town. If you’d like, I can give you our number and you’re free to make an order for us to deliver right to your home! One of my friends runs a fruit stand that we can pick up from as well. Now for meat-” crash! “-oh dear, not again.” 

Marie poked her head around the stand to see two teenage boys with dyed blue hair having kicked over a trash can and was spray painting the crap out of it with a weird skull symbol. They were wearing baggy black and white clothes with a bandana covering the lower half of their face. The woman looked as well, frowning. “I’m sorry, dear. I need to call the cops. You’re gonna want to leave here before things get bad.” 

“Why? Who exactly are they?” she inquired, watching as one of the boys threw an empty spray can at someone who was biking past. Thankfully, the spray can missed its target, but managed to make the biker almost lose his balance trying to dodge the incoming flying object. 

“Oh, they’re part of Team Skull. Bunch of nuisances that think they’re thugs”, The woman huffed, pulling out her cell phone. “Cops will be here and shoo them off. But before you go-” 

“Hold off on calling the cops”, Marie said, pulling out her pokeball. “Abigail, can I have Herdier for a little?” 

“Sure, Mama!” Abigail giggled, munching on a malasada already. Marie made a motion with her fingers, and Herdier heeled at his master’s feet, keeping up with her pace. Abigail sat at the base of the stand, the plump woman having exited to watch this spectacle and stay close to the child, with her phone still in her hand. 

Marie approached the duo, clearing her throat to get her attention. “Excuse me, gentlemen?”, she asked nicely, and the boys looked at her confused. “Can you please be destructive elsewhere? You seem to be scaring the locals.” 

“Well, lookie here”, One laughed, approaching her. Herdier growled, but maintained his poised stance at his master’s feet. “We got ourselves a knight in a shinin’ armor. A real herald of the people”, He looked her up and down. “Whatsa matter, shortie? Can’t handle a bit o’ noise?” 

“Actually, you’re destroying public property and making a scene”, Marie replied, gripping her pokeball. “I’ll ask nicely again before I get angry. Please be destructive elsewhere.” 

“Nah, nah, nah”, The other man laughed, pulling out his pokeball. “Lady, we got you outnumbered. Two on one, don’t seem fair do it?” 

“On the contrary, I happen to have two pokemon with me”, Marie hummed in thought, and summoned her Teddiursa. Herdier left his trainer’s side, standing next to the small bear pokemon and started to bark. 

The two teenagers looked at the pokemon, then each other, and started laughing. “Oh my god! What the fuck?!”, the one laughed, almost doubling over. “You wanna fight us with a teddy bear and a dumb puppy?” 

Herdier growled at that remark, and Teddiursa narrowed its eyes. “Heh, fine, bitch”, The one snickered, pulling out his pokeball. He and his companion summoned their pokemon; a Mightyena and a Meowth. Not bad, Marie thought. But the two creatures wouldn’t be enough to take down her team. 

With a snap of her fingers, Herdier made the first move. The dog pokemon lunged after Meowth, pinning it to the ground and grabbing it by the scruff of its neck. The Mightyena moved to get Herdier off his companion, but was smacked upside the head by Teddiursa - a one-hit knockout move that left the bite pokemon unable to continue to battle. Meanwhile, Herdier continued its thrashing of Meowth until Marie snapped her fingers again, and the dog pokemon let the Alolan form of the cat pokemon go. 

“Oh, my. Seems my team outmatched yours.” Marie chuckled, crossing her arms. 

“How...the fuck?” the one male asked, pulling Mightyena back into its ball. His compadre did the same for his Meowth, staring at Marie with wild and fear-filled eyes. 

“I had the upper hand through years of training”, Marie replied, approaching the boys. “Now, run along, before Herdier gets bitey.” To make a point, Herdier snarled and showed off its fangs to the boys. The grunts gasped and ran away, screaming something about telling their boss…

She shrugged, and smiled at Teddiursa. The baby bear came up to its mother trainer, attaching itself to her leg. “You can stay out. I’m sorry you didn’t have breakfast yet, but you’re so sleepy after you eat. Do you want a snack?” she cooed, picking up the pokemon and carrying it over to the malasada stand. 

The woman stared in disbelief, putting her phone away. “Well I… I’m not sure what to say. They will be back, but not for a while”, She laughed. “But here, a couple more on the house.” 

“You're too kind”, Marie smiled, happily taking a malasada out of the bag and giving it to her Teddiursa, and another one to her Herdier. “Can I have those phone numbers, please? I think it may be best if we remained out of town today.” 

“Oh, absolutely! Let me call my husband and tell him who you are!”, She chuckled. “By the way, you can call me Nadia. My husband’s name is Keanu”, She passed over the card with written information on it, and Marie happily placed that into her wallet. “May I ask - are you or were you a professional pokemon trainer?” 

“Not at all”, Marie replied, letting her pokemon finish their breakfast before summoning the Teddiursa back into its ball. “On the contrary, I’m a baker. I’m opening up a stall later this week.” 

“Ah! How wonderful!”, Nadia laughed, “You’ll have to let me come by sometime!” 

“Maybe I’ll bring you some sweets in exchange for your kindness”, Marie said, and waved to Nadia. “Goodbye, Nadia.” 

“And a good Alola to you my new friend!” Nadia laughed, waving the duo off. 

Herdier was a little more agitated on the way home, most likely due to the battle. He sniffed and snorted aggressively at anything even remotely close to his trainer. The walk home was fine, but with the sun getting higher the temperature was getting more and more humid. 

Thankfully, Machamp had gone an extra mile like he always did. When Marie returned home, Machamp was chewing on a banana with one hand, two hands holding up a curtain, and the fourth hand using a hammer to tack on the dark fabric that reflected the sunlight. “Oh, bless you.” Marie sighed in relief, turning on the air conditioning. 

She placed the bags on the counter, Sylveon instantly sticking its head in one and pulled out a sweet smelling malasada to snack on. “Don’t eat too much.” Marie cautioned, looking over the card. She texted Keanu’s number, introducing herself first, then asking how she could place an order. It would probably be a hot minute before Keanu replied, so she decided to get to work on setting up her kitchen. 

Audino helped her with the unpacking, while Gengar and Herdier played outside with Abigail on the beach. Her sleeves were rolled up, revealing scars and burn marks from the many years of being a pastry chef. She was thankful that she had the sense to pick out a house with a kitchen meant for massive cooking - where one could easily move from the fridge, to the prep station, to the stove, then to the sink and disposal unit. The small house they had in Kalos was fine, but Marie wanted Abigail to have something where she could learn how to properly cook for herself when the time came. 

Because in another three or four years, Abigail would be ready for the trials herself. Though it was a fearful moment for Marie to think about, it was best not to dwell on the upcoming events so much as to focus on the present. 

When Keanu texted back with the online forum, Marie was happy to see a wide range of fruits, vegetables, dairy, and meat. Though a bit more pricey than she anticipated, she thankfully had the funds to supply herself and her upcoming stall with what she needed. 

For the first time since the accident, she felt like she was no longer sleepwalking. Rather, she felt like she had awoken from the nightmare that was her life in Kalos, and was beginning to enjoy being awake in Alola.


	2. Gods & Monsters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the Land of Gods and Monsters....

In the land of gods and monsters, she was an angel. Caged to a rhythm that she didn’t want, until her awakening moment where she put someone else on the line before her own needs. It was a shame, Marie thought, that Abigail would never meet her. That all she had were photographs and recordings to show her when she was missing her. 

Machamp had placed the memories in the attic for now. At least there they could be safe from a hyperactive little girl and her pokemon friends. At least there, she could view them at her leisure after Abigail was put to bed, trying to think of how to explain the situation to her. Would she hate her? Would Abigail get angry and reject her mother? She prayed not. 

She finished setting up the television in the living room, sweat rolling down her forehead. Three days in Alola, and so far the living room was finished being put together, the kitchen was almost done, and Abigail’s room was finished. Tomorrow she had planned on finishing the kitchen by getting supplies from town and working on the bathroom. Her bedroom would be last, because she needed Gengar and Audino to help her stay calm while going through everything. A lot of it - and she really did mean a crap ton of the items - would be getting tossed out because of the memories attached to them. Memories of abuse, of hate, of who really was versus who **he** wanted her to be. 

But she didn’t need to be afraid. He was gone, he had been buried six feet under. She didn’t have to be caged to a rhythm anymore. She was free to do as she pleased, and that meant her going into pastry schooling and having once opened a shop in Kalos. But her face was known, and customers came more for gossip and autographs rather than for her food. So she closed up her shop and left, wanting to keep Abigail out of the limelight and exposing her to the media. 

And right now, seeing that raven haired baby girl out on the beach picking up shells with Audino made her sure of her choices. She opened the sliding glass door, standing over the porch overlooking the beach. She decided to order in some patio furniture later, after the stall was up and running. Her hands were on her hips, watching as Abigail waded knee-deep into the water. She knew how to swim, but that wasn’t what she was worried about. She was more afraid of the unknown water pokemon that could attack her at a moments notice, but with Audino there…

Well, thankfully, Audino was keeping a sound ear out for anything in the surrounding area that could be dangerous. 

Nadia had offered to watch Abigail after the elderly couple stopped by Marie’s house the previous night to drop off house supplies. Marie had met Nadia’s husband Keanu, who was just as plump and tan as she was. Marie and Abigail, who were both very pale skinned individuals, needed special sunscreen to not get burned by the Alola sun. Since Abigail had been outside more often than Marie, she was already showing her island tan. 

Marie however, having been inside unpacking and prepping for her upcoming pastry stall, She promised Nadia some sweets tonight along with payment in exchange for watching Abigail while she was out of the house. Apparently, there were stores opened only at night that Marie was missing out on. 

So naturally, the curious pastry chef wanted to see what she was missing out on. Nadia seemed open to the idea of her pokemon being out and active while she went to town, being that she was new to the area and wasn’t completely sure of the elderly couple offering to watch her child so eagerly. 

But perhaps that was Alola life? 

There was a knock at the door, and Marie turned to see Nadia waving to her through the glass. She smiled, making her way over to welcome the old woman. “Alola, Nadia.” 

“Alola to you too!” Nadia laughed, hugging an unsuspecting Marie before making her way to the kitchen and set the basket down on the counter. “My, you have been busy, haven’t you?” 

“I try.” Marie admitted, opening her fridge and pulling out a couple of containers. She set them on the counter, opening the lids to each one of them. A sample of sweets ranging from macarons to mousse to even pokepuffs. “I tried to make Kalos cuisines using as many Alolan native ingredients as possible.” She plucked a pink and brown macaron, inspecting it. A persim and cocoa macaron, which was akin to eating a fruity chocolate bar. Nadia took one from the container, and crunched down on the outer shell. 

“Oh, my!” She exclaimed, taking another. “These are delicious! And they’re Kalos?” 

“The recipe base is Kalos.” Marie explained, munching on her macaron. “But you can mix and match the flavors to taste. Is this good enough?” 

“You’re going to be a hit!” Nadia laughed, enjoying another. “I’ll have to move my stall next to yours just to see how well you do for yourself.” 

Marie just chuckled, grabbing her bag and was about to say goodbye to Nadia when she stopped her. “You’re leaving in that?” 

“I...Is something wrong?” Marie asked, looking over herself. Shorts, sandals, and a tank top. She wasn’t going on a date, so what was wrong with what she wore? 

Nadia chuckled, shaking her head. “Nothing, dear. It’s going to get cold at night. You should grab a jacket before it gets chilly outside.” 

“I’ll be back before it gets too cold.” Marie promised, opening her door and calling for Abigail. She kissed her child on the forehead, sending her off to get dressed in pajamas before leaving. She went over a list with Nadia - that Herdier would give warning signs if a storm was incoming, Gengar was allowed to use hypnosis on her, and Audino would take over as caretaker in the bedroom while Nadia called Marie to come home. Though the Alolan woman felt the extreme case was unnecessary, she agreed to the following actions should the worst happen and assured Marie that everything would be fine. 

She took Sylveon with her, just in case. The elderly pokemon stuck its head out of Marie’s bag, purring softly and enjoying the time outside of the house. She chuckled, scratching the creature’s head as they made their trek into town. Hopefully the bikes she ordered would arrive the next day - trekking into town was time-consuming. 

Nadia wasn’t kidding when she said that Hau’oli Cities' nightlife was different. 

Certain stalls had been opened, serving drinks of the alcoholic kind to the adults who roamed the streets. Some wild pokemon that were accustomed to human contact strutted the streets, It was more like Luminose now, with the wild pokemon intermingling with humans. But unlike Luminose, no one was attempting to chase the wild creatures off the shops. In fact, some of the shop owners welcomed the pokemon with a snack or a beverage. 

She pulled out her phone, opening it to the notes section. Low battery...fine, she wouldn’t be on it for long. She followed the directions of the map on her phone and found her stall - shut down, with a “Coming Soon!” sign up. It was a little bit bigger than she expected, but that was welcomed. She sighed dreamily, thinking about once again making people smile and forget their troubles for a moment with her desserts. 

“Shame, ain’t it?” 

She looked to who was talking to her, and had to look up. A tall man with white hair and a black undercut… He stared at the stand with gloom on his face, grey eyes looking like he hadn’t slept for weeks with the greying bags under them. “Use to come here as a kid. Had the best Tapu Coco this side of Hau’oli.” 

“Tapu Coco?” She inquired, earning a shocked look from the male. “Sorry, I just moved here. I’m not a natural native.” 

“Explains a lot.” He motioned to her outfit, chuckling. “Didn’t anyone tell ya to wear a coat at night?” 

“Its still warm.” She retaliated, eyeballing his attire. A black and white short-sleeved jacket with a white tank top under it. Baggy long black pants with white patterns zig-zagging up the sides. “Besides, I’m not gonna be out much longer. I have to get home to my kid soon.” 

“Kid?” He questioned, looking her over. “You barely come up to my chest, shortie! How the fuck could you be a mom already?” 

“Height doesn’t mean a damn thing of me being a mother!” She harped, only to slap a hand over her mouth. She expected to get bitched at for yelling at him…

...but instead he laughed. “You’re full of piss and vinegar, ain't ya?” He spied the Sylveon dozing off in her bag and snickered. “Where ya boy at?” 

“My boy?” She questioned, folding her arms over her chest. 

“Ya, ya boy. You got a boy don’t ya?” He asked, looking around her. 

“Sorry to disappoint, but I’m single-moming it over here.” She explained. “Did you need to talk to my “boy” about something, or perhaps you care to be an adult and come out with what you need?” 

His face looked at her skeptically, but then he choked out a laugh. “Damn girl, you’re missing all the signs, ain’t ya?” 

“I’m getting really fed up with your attitude.” She huffed, getting ready to turn on her heel when he grabbed her shoulder. 

“Nah, you mistakin’ me.” He laughed. “You never had Tapu Coco? Fine, follow me. Ain’t the best, but it's halfway decent.” 

“And I should go with you because?” She yanked her arm away, tired of this guy’s bullshit. 

“Cause why not?” He replied. He stuck out his hand, slouching over a little to meet her gaze. “Name’s Guzma.” 

She eyed him and his hand, before gripping it with hers for a handshake. “I’m Marie.” 

“Ain’t right for you to be alone.” He mused, gesturing for her to follow. “Lotta freaks come out at night. And you look like someone they’d love to pick on.” 

“Yeah, I think I met a couple a few days ago.” She replied, keeping up with his pace. He seemed to strut with the confidence of a Gym Leader, and people were watching the two of them closely. Or was it her they were watching? She couldn’t tell, but the feeling was creeping her out and now she wished she had worn a jacket just to cover herself up. 

He led her into a small diner, sitting at the counter and patting the seat next to her. She timidly sat next to him, setting the bag on the counter. Sylveon cracked open an eye, looking at Guzma before deciding it wanted to stretch its legs. Crawling out of the bag, it approached Guzma and started to sniff. “Well, ain't you a different kind o’ color?” He looked shocked, but let the fairy type sniff him out before returning to Marie and went back into the bag. “Strange thing.” 

“He’s old.” Marie explained, scratching Sylveon on the head. “I don’t make him fight unless he wants to. Poor thing, he’s already been through enough with me.” 

Before Guzma could ask what it was, they were interrupted by an annoyed looking waitress. “The usual?” She choked out, her voice cracking and smelling like cigarette smoke. Maybe she smoked too many packs? 

“Two tonight, Mariane.” He instructed. “One for me and one for the lady.” 

The woman called Mariane looked Marie over, then commented. “Not your usual type.” 

Type? “I’m sorry, we’re not here on a date.” She explained, feeling flustered. 

“Sure, and I’m not working the night shift. Just a few hours between daylight and moonlight.” Mariane commented, rolling her eyes. Within a few minutes, she slammed down two cups of what looked like normal hot chocolate between the two. “Don’t call me when you need something.” 

The cranky waitress moved back to the other end of the diner, and Marie crossed her brows. What was up with this cranky old bitch? She eyed the drink, nothing special seemed to be in it. Guzma was drinking like he had just crossed the desert and it was the first thing he could drink, so it must’ve been good. 

She took a sip, swishing the drink in her mouth like one would rinsing with water. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t necessarily good either. A standard luke-warm hot chocolate made from a powder using water. No extra care, no extra flavors. Just an overpriced drink with a fancy name slapped on it.

How to improve upon it? 

She poked her head behind the counter, seeing an assortment of goodies. “Excuse me, Mariane?” 

“Whaddya want?” the woman scowled, not feeling like she wanted to put up with anyone’s bullshit tonight. 

Marie huffed, pulling out a couple of high bills and laid them on the counter. “Can you...look the other way for a while? Go take a break and lock the front door? I’d like to have some alone time with my new friend here.” 

Mariane chewed on her lower lip, but shrugged. She locked the front door, during the sign to close, then pocketed the money before walking to the back. “You got half an hour, kid.” 

“Many thanks!” Marie chirpped, hopping the counter. She immediately took Guzma’s drink, pouring it down the sink. 

“Hey, hey, hey!” He yelled, trying to grab the cup before the contents were dumped. “What the fuck?” 

“You want Tapu Coco at my stall?” She asked blankly, putting the cups into the sink. “Or do you wanna continue to drink this piss-ass excuse of a drink?” 

He folded his arms over his chest, pouting like a child. “Well, alright then. Show me what you got, girl.” 

She washed her hands quickly, looking down the bar at the items available. To make an actual, honest-to-the-gods cocoa would take longer than she wanted. She didn’t have the prepwork done and had only half an hour….what could she do? 

Well if you can’t heat it up, freeze it down. 

She opened the cooler at the front, pulling out a couple bottles of Whole Milk and set them on the counter. She grabbed a blender and filled it halfway with ice. She went back into the small fridge, pulled out some half and half and the chocolate syrup. “Not going to be the best.” She admitted, grabbing the hot chocolate packages. Her nose curled up, it wasn’t even a brand name! Just some cheap bullshit package! “But it’ll be a hell of a lot better than this shit we’re drinking.” 

She placed the ingredients into a blender, looking around for some kind of flavor enhancer. She spotted the chef in the back, looking at his phone instead of cooking or prepping. She rang the bell, clearing her throat. “Sorry to bother you! Got any small chunks of chocolate?” 

The chef grunted, looking more annoyed than Mariane. He eventually moved off of his ass to grab a small bar of something that looked like chocolate and handed it to Marie. “Obliged.” She replied, grabbing the bar and breaking off a small piece. It would have to work, So she set about roughly chopping the bar up into half, then making half of it roughly cut into pieces that the blender could easily mix. 

She capped the blender, setting it on pulse while she looked for to-go containers and whipped cream. When she managed to find the objects in case, she slammed the cups down between her and Guzma, taking one cup at a time and lining the inside with the syrup. When she felt the concoction was blended until creamy, she removed it and poured the contents into the cups almost evenly. Topped with whipped cream and a few chocolate shavings, she presented to Guzma her drink. 

He looked at her like she was stupid. “Its cold.” 

“I worked with what I have.” She retorted, quickly putting away what she used and left the dirty dishes in the sink. She paid Mariane to look away for her to cook, not clean. “Try it and tell me what you think.” 

He smiled only a little, scoffing. Grabbing a straw from a dispenser nearby, he disposed of the paper wrapping and injected it into the drink, taking a sip. Then another. And another. He looked confused, for a moment before taking a fourth much longer sip. “God damn.” He breathed, looking at her. “I wouldn’t have believed you made this from the shit they have here if I hadn’t been watching you.” 

She rolled her eyes, grabbing her own staw and took a sip. Much, much better. Creamy, cold, blended, and besides the ice there were no chunks. Well, no chunks of powdery mix, that is. She hummed in appreciation, smiling at him. “So, if I put this on my menu, would it be too bad?” 

“I mean...Shit.” He bit his lower lip. “Shit, I’d even stop by for this drink. Might not be too bad that you take over the stand, lady.” 

“I sell pastries, too.” She commented, grabbing her bag and getting up. “We should head out before the bitchy waitress sees what we did.” 

He snickered, making a brisk walk to the door before holding it open for her. Once Marie stepped outside the diner, the cold wind of Alola hit her like bricks. She instantly regretted not having a jacket. Her instinct was to curl up, try and conserve body heat. 

Guzma took note of her cold shock and asked. “How far away do you live from here?” 

“Half an hour outside of the city...walking.” She replied, her arms grabbing her forearms and rubbing them. “I’ll be fine, though. Been through colder weather than this.” 

“Not the point.” He grunted, putting his drink down on the sidewalk. “Your shop opens when?” 

“Next week on Monday.” she answered, looking away from him and down the street to see if any shops were open that sold jackets. From an immediate glance, there wasn’t any. She huffed, turning to look at him and ask him something when he put his jacket around her shoulders. 

“Keep it until then, and get your own jacket.” He sighed, grabbing his drink from the sidewalk and taking a sip. He pondered for a moment, then reached into his jacket while it was wrapped around her body and pulled out a pen, writing his number down on the back of her hand. “Call me when you get home, shortie. I don’t wanna see you in the obituary tomorrow.” 

Rolling her eyes, she looked up at him. “What about you, hot shot? Aren’t you gonna get cold?” 

“Yeah but my dumb ass lives close to here.” He teased, biting the end of his straw. “Get goin’, before I get the urge to carry your ass home.” 

She shook her head, wrapping the jacket around it. It drowned her, but it kept her warm and it smelled nice. “I’ll text you as soon as I can.” She promised, walking down the street and out of his sight. 

Guzma just stood outside the diner, the cranky ass waitress returning in a huff and reopening the diner. He flipped her off for the attitude, pulling out his phone and calling one of the grunts. 

“Was that her?” he asked, his tone no longer cheerful and happy. 

“Yeah, that’s the bitch!” The grunt whimpered. “Why didn’t you take her out, boss?” 

“Did you see what she had on her?” He laughed. “Damn girls’ got an off color! You got photos of it right? Send them to Lusamine and ask her what she’s willin’ to pay for it. I’m not making any moves until we know what this girls got and what Lusamine wants to buy off us.” 

“Right away!” The grunt accepted the order, ending the call. 

Guzma walked to the darker side of town, where one of the Team Skull small hideouts was at. He thought back on Marie, and a wicked smile came to his face. She’d pay for disrespecting Team Skull like she did, but first he wanted to play around a little. He enjoyed the sight of her bent over in those shorts, and damn that golden-haired twat he fucked around with. He wanted a little sexual fun before he took this one down. 

Just by the way she dressed, he guessed she was just wanting to get **fucked hard** by someone. But not yet, he reminded himself. Not just yet….

_He really wanted to shatter this one._


	3. Who's In Your Heart Now?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Look who's in your heart now

Well, he wasn’t perfect. He wasn’t the knight in shining armor that she fantasized about in Kalos. He didn’t have long black hair, he wasn’t average height, and he didn’t talk to her like she was some princess. No, he was a dorky, lanky and tall goofball who sent her sweet texts through the day. Sweet, quirky flirts and emoji’s that caused her to bite her knuckle to keep herself from giggling like a high school girl. His jacket was washed and dried, folded gently and sealed in a ziplock bag. But since he started flirting with her, she couldn’t help but open the bag and feel the fabric between her fingers. The smell of cocoa, liquor, and cigarette smoke would linger on her fingertips for a while afterwards. She would facetime with some of her friends from Kalos, who were all shocked that she was interested in what they considered a ruffian. Well...look who made their way into her interests. 

She waited at her stall, the back part of the kitchen was cooling off after running for most of the day. Nadia and Keanu came early in the morning, watching and laughing as Marie was carefully overtaken by the Kalos tourists who were interested in her food now more than the gossip. A few recognized her status, but knew her responses well enough to anything they would ask. They asked how she was, how glad they were to see her in Alola, they always loved her sweets, ordered a couple of things and left. Within a couple of hours of opening her stall, her bread was out. Soon after her sweets were all bought out, save a few she had set aside for Guzma. He promised her to be by before she closed, and she willed herself to stay open until the last few sweets were bought out or she was closing up. 

She leaned on the counter, writing down what she needed to make the next day since she ran out of her initial goodies within a few hours. Just as she wrote down an agreeable number for Pecha Cheesecake minis, a shadow loomed over her. She chewed on her lower lip, looking up through her white bangs and seeing Guzma. “You still opened?” He asked, his tone smug. 

“Depends.” She teased, going back to her math. “Kinda waiting for a certain gentleman to come by and grab the jacket he so willingly loaned me.” She closed the notepad, raising herself up to rest on her hand, and stared at him in the face with a cocky expression. “Now, I just wonder why he’d show up so late.” 

“Maybe he wanted to see how well you did.” He teased back, looking through her cases. “And he’s gotta say; you did alright for your first day, shortie.” 

“Alright?” She feigned offense to that. “Nearly everything is sold out! I’m only left with a pittance of my stock!” She watched as he tried not to laugh. “ Oh woe is me...But not for him.” She stood up, stretching her back and feeling it crack up her spine. “I managed to save a couple of sweets for him.” 

“Oh really?” He cooed, leaning on the counter and watching her sashay off to the back corner of the kitchen, pulling out two pre-made drinks from the fridge and grabbing her bag from under the counter. “To what does he owe such pleasure?” 

“The pleasure that he gave me warmth with his jacket and wasn’t a jackass with me.” She replied, grabbing the shutters and pulling them down before his face. She locked the stall from the inside with a chain and padlock, making sure everything was cleaned and put away before leaving the store with her bag of cash of today’s earnings and receipts for debit and credit purchases. She left the building, locking up with a bolt lock and a padlock for extra measure. She handed Guzma the drink, a box of assorted sweets, and his jacket. “Seriously, though. You probably saved my ass from getting sick.” 

He looked at her confused, but took the stuff gratefully. “I uh...thanks.” He looked at his jacket, pulling it out and wrapping it around his body. He looked like he was having a battle inside himself, and he was. He was wondering why she did that. Why she washed and dried his clothes, made him a drink, and sent him with a baker's dozen of free sweets. She didn’t know what he was gonna do, was she? 

“Is something wrong?” She asked. “We have to use scent-free detergents and fabric softeners. If you don’t like it, I’m sorry. You can charge me for-” 

“No, no, just…” He paused, looking at her. “No, I just...no other chick’s done my laundry or even returned my clothes to me. Hell, and if they did return my clothes, it was usually ruined to shreds.” 

“Sounds like you’ve been hanging with the wrong crowd.” Marie noted, sucking on her drink. She walked ahead of Guzma, seeing he was just standing there looking at the box of pastries in his hand shocked. “Look, if you’re not comfortable-” 

“Ain’t that.” He murmured, catching up with her. “I just...got a bunch of siblings and as much as I wanna keep the sweets to myself, it doesn’t feel right.” 

She sipped on her drink, “How many?” 

“Huh?” He quirked an eyebrow at her. 

“How many siblings?” She repeated, still sipping on her drink. 

“Uh….a few. And their friends.” He didn’t want to tell her he was the gang leader of a couple dozen teenagers. Not yet. He needed that Sylveon, and he needed to know what other pokemon she had that Lusamine would find useful. She was already offering a couple hundred grand for the Sylveon alone because of his unusual coat color. 

“So, like, a party barge?” She teased, leading him through town. “Look, as a parent, I can say that it's okay to have moments to yourself. You don’t have to share every single one of them with your family. Hell, if I shared everything I had with Abigail, she would have already had her first taste of alcohol.” 

He paused for a moment, carefully opening the box top and peeked inside at the assortment of desserts. Fancy, Kalos-looking bite-sized pieces that screamed upper class to him. He grabbed what looked like a banana and chocolate mousse cake thing and shoved it into his mouth. 

Then immediately grabbed the drink and guzzled it down because she didn’t mention the fucking spicy ass flavoring the chocolate had. 

But besides the muscle in his mouth burning away, it was good. The banana soon coated over the spices that coated his tongue from the chocolate, making way for the cold ice of the drink to numb his senses. He stuck his tongue out, panting. “Holy hell, what the fuck was that?” 

“Spiced banana and chocolate.” She explained. 

“No, I meant the goddamn spice.” He breathed, feeling his face sweat. 

“Dried Tanga berries from the market.” 

No shit, no wonder his tongue was on fire. He took a few more sips of his drink, panting. “Shit, that’s hot.” 

She laughed at him, and he felt his anger flare up. Not now, he needed to cool it for the time being. “So, uh...what’re your plans tonight?” 

“Well, I was hoping to invite you over for dinner. I promise, it's not spicy.” She held up her hand as if she were taking a vow. “But I do need to pick up Abigail on the way home. Do you wanna tag along and get a free dinner or…?” 

He lit up, a smile plastered on his face. “That sounds perfect!” 

She led him through the streets to where she dropped Abigail off early that morning. A daycare ran by an elderly woman and her team of Audino and Clefable. The exchange between the two women were short, Abigail had already been dressed and ready to go home that moment. She ran out the door as soon as she was free to leave, then stopped to stare at Guzma. “Hey there, squirt.” He squatted down to her level, smiling. “You must be Abigail. Its nice to finally meet ya.My name’s Guzma.” 

She looked between her mom and this man, and only when Marie nodded did Abigail respond. “Mom talks about you with her friends.” Marie blushed, grabbing Abigail’s shoulder gently when the 8 year old added. “She gets all red when she talks about you. I think she likes you.” 

“Abi!” The mom shrieked, and Guzma laughed. “I’m sorry, Guzma, really-” 

“Nah, that’s cute.” He teased, standing up and cupping Marie’s face. “But I think you must’ve been out in the sun too much today. You’re all red in the face and burning up.” 

She batted his hand away, the man laughing at her. Abigail held onto her mom’s hand as the trio walked home, listening to Abigail babbled about second grade in Alola to Marie and Guzma. “We got to play with a Litten! Miss Jenny said they can grow up to be big, and sometimes scary looking pokemon! But they’re really, really gentle!” 

“If you train them well, that is.” Marie agreed. “Any pokemon can be good or bad depending on the trainer. It's up to us to make sure we treat our pokemon and each other well.” 

He rolled his eyes at that statement, and was about to make a smartass remark when Abigail squeeled and ran up to a rather nice looking beach house. Patio, front porch, Wasn’t too large so that it flaunted wealth but had a certain middle-upper class tone to it. Greeting them outside was a Teddiursa that was happily sucking on its palm and the crescent moon on its head glowed. “Oh, good!” Marie pulled Teddiursa’s palm out, inspecting it. “Looks like the Beedrill hive I put up is working.” 

“Beedrill hive?” He questioned. “So close to the home?” 

“Beedrill are harmless so long as they don’t feel threatened.” She explained, opening the door to the house. Guzma looked around inside, slightly in awe but mostly infuriated. There was a set of living room furniture in a dark oak color, a rocking chair by the sliding glass door that led to the patio on the back. The table was framed in dark oak, with a colored glass of a dark purple color. Her kitchen was already organized and put together, cleaned spotless. Variations of mixers, cast iron pots and pans, simple non-stick, and a row of different types of cooking utensils and whisks lined up. 

“Its...well, this is nice.” He was jealous. Exactly what did she do back where she was from that gave her the money to buy this place, the stall in town, and the furniture along with it? 

“Thanks.” She smiled, setting her bag on the table. Immediately her Audino ran down the halls and gripped her leg, squealing. “Oh, hello. Did you miss me?” She giggled, scratching the top of the creature’s head. 

Guzma felt a shiver run down his spine, and turned to see a pair of red eyes glinting at him from his shadow. “What the fuck?!” He yelled, falling backwards and landing on his ass. The Gengar snickered, getting a kick out of spooking the Team Skull boss. 

“Gengar!” She scolded, helping Guzma up off the floor. “For shame! Back in your ball until bedtime!” 

Its ears flopped down in sorrow, the red light beam from its pokeball summoning it back into its container. “I’m so sorry, he usually isn’t like this.” She explained, looking up at his anger-filled face. 

“Don’t understand why you need that kind of a pokemon.” He growled, looking around. He watched Abigail take off her shoes by the door, and he did the same. “Mind if I look around?” 

“Oh, go ahead!” She smiled, pulling out a cast iron pot and setting it on the stove. “Bathroom’s down the hall on the left if you need it!” 

He turned on the lights, seeing a row of photographs on the walls. He quickly inspected each, feeling more and more anger bubble up in him. Photographs of her with Abigail looking over cliffs, of having picnics with their pokemon. Vacations he never got to take, a family he never had. He was jealous, but more so than jealous he was determined. He needed to play the part for a while longer, to get money for his team so they can turn the lights back on for Po Town at least. 

He paused, looking into what he guessed was her bedroom. He stared for a good long while, seeing her room adorned with certificates and medals. A display case of badges framed next to the door, he thought about eventually stealing them from her as well. Nah, wouldn’t be that much fun. Not like the badges mean anything in Alola. 

Could be bragging rights though. 

He inhaled and his stomach growled, the smell of something delicious from the kitchen filling his senses. He wandered back into the main area, seeing Herdier snuggling up to Abigail and Machamp helping his master in the kitchen. Teddiursa had come in from the outside, and Guzma saw he had been clutching a small ball in his hand. “What’s up with your teddy bear?” 

“Hm?” 

“Your Teddiursa has somethin’ in his hand.” 

“Oh!” Marie chuckled, dicing onions and tossing them into the pot with the bubbling butter on the bottom. “Its an iron ball.” 

“Iron ball?” he repeated questioningly, tilting his head to the side. 

“Teddiursa knows Fling, which is dependent on an item it's holding.” She explained, chopping up bits of bacon and putting them into the pot to cook with the onions and butter, Audino spooning in some flour. “The heavier the object, the more damage it can do by literally throwing whatever it's holding at its opponent.” 

“And Teddiursa carries just one?” He inquired. 

“Not really.” She smiled at him, winking. “A good trainer never gives up her secrets.” 

He scrunched up his nose, thinking of a witty remark when he felt Abigail tugging on his jacket. “Um, Mister Guzma? Do you have any pokemon?” 

He scoffed, “Yeah, I do. But they’re all really cool and creepy bug pokemon.” 

There was a tiny gasp from Abigail, and she whispered, “I love bug pokemon especially.” She started bouncing in excitement, “Mama, mama! Can I see Mister Guzma’s pokemon?” 

“I’m alright with it if he is.” Marie hummed, peeling some potatoes while Audino added heavy cream and milk into the pot. She smiled at him quickly, then returned to focusing on her pot of whatever she was making. 

“Alright, fine.” He rolled his eyes, clicking his tongue. “But only one tonight, okay? The big guy has to be let out outdoors, got it?” He pulled out a pokeball, summoning his Wimpod. “Be gentle, he gets scared easily.” 

The small arthropod pokemon stared up at Abigail in fear, the antennae sticking straight up. Abigail sat down on the floor first, then slowly moved into a position where her body was flat against the floor and she was at eye level with the creature. “Wow...he’s so pretty!” she giggled, watching Wimpod start to calm down and begin to sniff at her. Abigail reached into her overall pocket, pulling out a piece of pokemon treat and held it out in the palm of her hand. Wimpod sniffed briefly before gobbling up the snack. She giggled, “He tickles!” 

Guzma stood in profound silence, watching Wimpod warming up to Abigail. He squatted down, watching the two with a look upon his face that was filled with curiosity and caution. Curiosity for the sudden interest Wimpod had with Abigail, as they were often timid creatures and startled by most noises. Caution because it was unlike his Wimpod to warm up so quickly to small children, unless…

“She won’t harm him, I promise.” 

Marie’s calm voice interrupted his train of thought. “Hm? Oh I’m not worried about that. I’m more scared of him spitting acid at her.” He explained, standing up. Wimpod head bumped Abigail and he raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest. “So long as he plays nice with everyone…” 

“Dinner’s done.” Marie sighed, pulling out three round loaves of bread from the over. He hadn’t been paying attention to her, and watched just silently as she placed each of the round loaves on plates at the table. Abigail gasped, moving slowly off the floor and to her spot at the island table on the barstool. Wimpod just crawled up the side, sitting on the table by his new friend’s side. “Ah, Guzma, is he okay to eat human food?” 

“Yeah, he’s a bottom feeder.” He laughed, reaching over to pet his pokemon. The bug creature sighed happily, trilling a little and looking at its master shyly. “What’s for dinner? Don’t tell me its just bread.” 

Marie took a knife and scraped it up the side of the bread bowl, finding the original incision and pulled the top off. The Alolan was treated to the smell of cheese and bacon, the sight of cheddar soup mixed with vegetables and soaking up the insides of the home-made bread container. “God damn…” He breathed, taking a spoon and had his first bite. A crunch of carrot, the taste of broccoli, and the squish of diced mushrooms. He used the bread cover to dip into the soup, and felt like he was eating something made in heaven. He forgot to feel bad that his grunts were at home relying on snacks and energy drinks for food. 

Or were they? He saw the pot was still mostly full, and he chewed in thought. “I made extra for you to take home.” Marie smiled softly. “I’ll put it into containers after dinner so your family can eat. Plus the friends of your siblings.” 

Now he felt the pang of guilt eat at him a little. She was being so sweet to him, and all he was doing was playing nice to get to her pokemon. He tried to envision how she got the money, stepping on some poor underlings and cutting people’s throats to climb her way up some corporate ladder. Maybe she slept around with a bunch of rich guys and blackmailed them for money? 

No...he couldn’t see her doing either of them. 

He watched her pokemon eat their kibble, fruits and veggies. His own Wimpod had a small saucer of the soup provided by Marie. No, she took good care of her pokemon and of others. So what the hell happened that she came into money and luxury? How did she get that off-colored Sylveon? 

He finished his bowl shortly before Marie did, and being this close to her in bright light he saw the marks on her arm. Most of them he identified as burn marks but a few were….Oh shit.. 

“Mama! I’m all done!” Abigail giggled, swallowing the last of her bread. “Can I go play?” 

“It's getting dark out. Can you get ready for bed? You can play tomorrow.” Marie replied, grabbing her plate and then her daughter's. “Say goodnight to Mister Guzma, too.” 

Abigail hopped off the barstool, kissing Wimpod on the forehead and then hugging Guzma’s leg. “Goodnight Mister Guzma! Thank you for letting me play with your Wimpod!” 

“Anytime, kiddo.” He muttered, watching her scurry off down the hall. The sound of a pokemon being released from its pokeball was heard, and Gengar was once again introduced to the group. It snickered at Guzma, probably still laughing from scaring him half to death earlier. 

“Be nice.” Marie warned. “Abigail’s getting ready for bed. Put her to sleep.” 

“You use a Gengar to get your kid to sleep?” Guzma questioned. “Doesn’t seem like a normal method.” 

“He eats her nightmares and uses hypnosis to get her to sleep better.” She explained, packing up the soup into small containers like she promised and stacking them into a bag for him. “Abigail has nightmares, and up until we were informed of Gengar’s abilities, she was on medication. She’s been doing a lot better off the medicine.” 

She paused, looking at him as if she was expecting him to ask something. And while she was, he just put his hands up. “I’m not gonna ask if you don’t wanna tell.” He offered, approaching her at the sink with his plate as he pocketed Wimpod back into its ball. He examined her back, seeing the beginning signs of more scars that were across her shoulder blades and down her spine. He put his plate in the sink, then put his hands on either side of her body, causing her to freeze up. “But I am gonna ask about those marks on your arm.” 

“Burn marks, I’m a pastry chef.” She quickly replied, her hands shaking a little as she finished packing up. She snapped the lid on the last plastic bowl container and placed it in the bag when he grabbed her wrist, bringing it up to his face. “Seriously, I don’t know what you see.” 

“You use to cut yourself, didn’t you?” 

She froze, not expecting him to say that. “Look, I used to. Some of my siblings used to as well.” He whispered, his thumb tracing one along her wrist. “And I can feel more on your back, girl.” 

“Stop.” She begged, her breath hitching. “Guzma, _please_.” 

He spun her around, and she looked at him with wide eyes that were fearful. He could use this as his moment to destroy her, to make her beg for him to stop. He could force her to her knees this instant, convince him to keep her secret to himself. 

But he didn’t. He locked eyes with her as he brought the wrist up to his lips, kissing it tenderly. He watched her chest quiver, and he continued to move his mouth to kiss every cut along her forearm whether it was by blade or by burn. “You don’t have to tell me yet.” He assured her, pausing his worship. “When we’re both ready, okay?” 

She nodded, and he leaned in to kiss her forehead. She gripped his shirt for a moment, her face flushed bright red from the intimacy they were sharing. The crinkling of the bag under his grip caused her to let go, looking back up at him. He just smiled at her, backing away and walking out the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow, shortie.” And with that, he left the house. 

It was a solid few minutes before Marie fell to the floor, her knees weak from the adrenaline loss. Audino was by her side, looking over its trainer with precaution. Sylveon was just plopping itself on her lap, purring gently. She stared at the door, catching her breath and sounding like she had just ran to the other side of the island. 

Look who was in her heart now.


	4. Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That boy is a Monster

He consumed her heart and her brain. She would wake up in the middle of the night, breaking herself free of Gengar’s hypnosis, in a breathless sweat and an ache between her legs. Cold showers before work only caused her brain to focus on the thought of him shirtless, his own sweat running down his chest, pressed against her back and kissing other parts of her body as softly as he kissed her wrist. 

He was a monster. 

He came by after work every night, tempting her with those devilish charms. She always saved him a box of sweets, tagging the ones that were spicy with a toothpick. He always walked her to at least Abigail’s after school care, usually not staying for dinner but letting his Wimpod spend a few minutes with the 8 year old before leaving the duo alone for the night and promising to come again tomorrow. 

But always, no matter if it was at the school care or on the rare occasion he stayed for dinner, he kissed her forehead before he left. 

Today, however, he didn’t come. She waited an extra half an hour before giving up and going home. He hadn’t responded to her texts that day either, and she worried he was ghosting her. Was he that kind of guy? Were Alolan men different? Kalos men were very flirty and upfront about not wanting something serious...maybe she pegged Guzma wrong. 

She had just finished washing the dishes from her night filled with baking and cooking. She had the next few days off, working with a 10 hour shift four days a week and taking three days off to care for her daughter. What better way to spend the weekend than to take Abigail into town to see Nadia and Keanu, get some ice cream, and maybe do a little shopping. 

Then came a knock at her door, and Herdier was barking incessantly at it. “Down, boy.” She scolded, but the dog pokemon just kept growling at the door. She peered out to see a girl with bright pink hair with yellow highlights, staring back at her with bored yellow eyes. Draped around her shoulders was…”Guzma?” 

“Sorry to bother you.” The girl spoke first, pushing her way past Marie and the snarling Herdier. “This was the closest place he could think of.” 

Marie stared at Guzma, who was bruised and bloodied. His shirt was torn in a few places, and black skin patches lined his flesh. Audino cooed in concern, and Marie tightened the messy bun her hair was in. “Audino, get the medical kit. Machamp, I need the towels.” The chubby pokemon chirped as it ran to the bathroom, grabbing the red bag and making a mad dash back. Machamp grabbed a stack of towels, placing one behind Guzma to protect the couch from attaching itself to his cuts and infecting them. Marie shook him gently, seeing if he was conscious. “What the hell happened?” 

“Some dumbasses who thought they could take the boss out by jumping him.” She growled in annoyance. “I keep telling him to watch his back!” 

Boss? She looked at the girl confused, but before she could question, the girl started up again. “Some of the grunts found him on the side of the road and called me. They’re too chicken shit to bring him anywhere but the base.” 

“I’m sorry, but you’re calling him boss and referring to someone called grunt?” She questioned, pulling out plastic gloves from the bag and grabbed a pair of surgical scissors. “I’m not adding anything up.” 

“Oh, didn’t he tell you?” the girl questioned. “Name’s Plumeria, he and I lead Team Skull.” 

Marie nearly dropped her scissors. No...he couldn’t be. “No, that’s preposterous.” She commented back, finishing cutting up his shirt and pulling the fabric aside to inspect the damage done. “There’s no way you’re part of that chaotic group.” 

“He really got the better of you, didn’t he?” Plumeria questioned, helping Marie lift Guzma up to remove his jacket and cut away the back of his shirt. “Wow, what was he telling you?” 

“That he had siblings!” She hissed, pulling out a cloth. Audino came over with a bowl of warm water, letting Marie drench the cloth before dabbing away at Guzma’s wounds. “A lot of siblings to look after.” 

“He wasn’t wrong on a certain level.” Plumeria responded, kneeling on the other side of Guzma. “What can I do to help?” 

“Get the bandages out. I need at least three strips that are long enough to cover the cut on the front.” She inspected the worst of the injuries, fingers tracing over the skin outside of the cut. “They were getting personal. This is a Scyther’s blade mark.” She grabbed a fresh cloth, soaking it in a disinfecting liquid, before dabbing that directly onto the wound. She heard Guzma hiss in pain, whimper and whining. “And given how I’ve dealt with two of your crew members before, I wouldn’t put it past them if they were seeking revenge for the chaotic bullshit you guys started.” 

“Can we focus on getting him patched up?” Plumeria begged, finishing cutting the badge strips. “Cause, for fucks’ sake, I didn’t bring him here to be lectured.” 

“Then why did you bring him here? Call a god damn cab next time and take him to the hospital!” Marie did her best not to raise her voice too loud as to wake up Abigail. Gengar poked his head from the hall to see what was the fuss about, frowning at the sight of Guzma. 

“Because he asked to see you!” Plumeria almost screamed. 

Audino huffed, placing her hand on Guzma’s head and hummed as its palm glowed. “Calm mind…” Marie muttered, watching Guzmas’ pain-twisted face relax. “Fine...you didn’t want to come see me but you’re here, he’s here, and you’re spilling shit on the table.” She grabbed some of the gauze, placing it over Guzma’s injury and gently taping it in place. “Look, kid, this has gotta be bad for you too. I’m sorry I snapped. Go take a shower.” 

“I don’t have anything else to wear.” Plumeria sniffled, breaking down. “I’ve got a couple dozen other problems to deal with besides this right now, and I fuckin’ can’t-” 

Audino placed her hand on Plumeria, cooing at her. The girl whimpered, Calm Mind being used on her the same way Guzma had it. Marie sighed, the weight of the situation hitting her shoulders. Poor girl...She knew someone just like her many years ago, trying to take care of someone who always seemed to have trouble finding them. 

“Machamp, I need you to get some of the spare clothes from the attic.” She ordered, and the muscular pokemon grunted. He wandered off, the clattering of the attic ladder being pulled down and the creaking of the wooden stairs under his weight. “He’ll get you something to wear. Might be a bit big, but at least it’s clean. Don’t worry about Guzma, I’ll take care of him.” 

Plumeria stared at her with wide eyes, dumbfounded. In all honesty, this had been a ruse conducted by Lusamine in order for two members of Team Skull who could handle Maries’ pokemon to get in and out by sunrise. Guzma had gone beyond the call of duty to his fuck buddy, just for a couple thousand dollars per head on the pokemon. 

All so he could turn the power back on for Po Town. 

Yet, here was this woman who was going the extra mile in a different direction. She heard the truth of Team Skulls’ boss, tended to the wounds on his body with care, and offered Plumeria fresh clothes and a warm shower. The kindness of a mother Plumeria never got, which was something that the other grunts needed right now more than Po Town getting its electricity back. 

Machamp growled in Plumeria’s direction, offering baggy flannel pajamas. “Towels are in the hall closet, dear.” Marie stated, still working on some of the wounds Guzma had on his skin. Plumeria just took the pajamas and towel carefully, locking herself in the bathroom and staring at herself in the mirror. Could she still go through this? Guzma had told her she was some rich bitch who needed to get knocked down a few pegs, and she believed that up until now. Lusamine was a rich bitch who tormented Guzma so she could give him money, Marie was just...just…

Kind. 

She browsed through the assortment of shampoos on the shower caddy, some of the brands looking fancy and a few of them were impronunciable to her. She settled on a blue bottle with cursive writing, with the only description as “Shampoo” on it. Uncapping the bottle, the smell of lilac and gooseberries permeated her nose. She was a book person. This scent was the calling card of a very powerful sorceress from an old Fantasy book. Plumeria started up the shower, undressing and using the available face scrub to rid herself of her make-up. She couldn’t have an acne episode start up right now, anyways. 

Once she was done with her shower and left the bathroom, she noticed Guzma laying in the bedroom across the hall. Judging by the decor, it was Marie’s room. And she was right there, next to him, changing the cloth on his forehead. “Is he feverish?” Plumeria asked, approaching her. 

“Not yet. But just in case, I’m ready for a long night.” At that cue, Machamp brought in the rocking chair from the living room and set it next to the night table. Marie sighed happily, sitting down. “I made you some dinner. I do hope it's to your liking.” 

“You...you made me dinner?” 

“But of course.” She chuckled, looking at Plumeria confused. “Why wouldn’t I?” 

“We...we’re part of a gang!” She declared. “You don’t know if we’re here to hurt you!” 

“If you were here to hurt me, you would’ve done so by now.” she chuckled, grabbing a book from her nightstand and opening it up to where the bookmark was. “So, I don’t think you intend to do that anymore even if it was your original idea. Besides, that says more about your character than mine, doesn’t it?” 

Her mouth went dry, anxiety pulsing through her veins. “And where do I sleep? On the floor?” 

“Oh, no, dear. You sleep on the couch. Audino’s already made a bed for you.” She didn’t look up from her book, content on rocking herself slowly and reading. “I won't be sleeping tonight. Guzma needs to be looked after in case his condition worsens and we need an actual doctor on the scene.” 

“Why not have Gengar do it?” Plumeria scoffed. 

“His job is to keep Abigail asleep and to keep nightmares away. Audino’s job is to help me with Guzma. Sylveon is too old to do anything drastic. Machamp is resting in case he needs to help me carry Guzma to the hospital later. And Herdier’s job is to guard the home.” 

“You forgot Teddiursa.” 

“He’s asleep. He has Beedrill Hive duties in the morning,” Marie flipped the page, placing her bookmark and finally looking at the girl. “You’re looking for a reason to hate me, I assume. Which gives me the suspicion that this is all a ruse to hurt my family.” She stood up, looking up at Plumeria with a tiredness in her eyes that she saw in Nanu’s. 

“And if it is?” Plumeria questioned. 

“It means you are convincing yourself not to go through with whatever you planned,” Marie deducted, changing Guzma’s forehead cloth while she was up. “But I’d like to help you instead. I’m assuming you’re here for money, right?” 

“How did you know?” 

“I’m not stupid, Plumeria. The minute Herdier was growling at the door, I had my suspicions. Guzma’s always looking over the objects in my house, and it wasn’t hard to put two and two together after you admitted you two were part of Team Skull.” She rubbed her forehead. “So, I’m offering you an alternative choice. How many kids of your little gang can work?” 

“You’re going to hire us to do your dirty work instead?” 

“No, I’m offering you a job at my bakery.” Marie stared at Plumeria. “I’ll pay above minimum wage, but I only have room right now for at least ten, maybe twelve people. Hopefully that’ll increase in the next few weeks because I’ve been debating on making delivery runs an option.” 

“....why are you doing this? Why are you being nice to us?” 

There was a sorrow that filled her eyes now, and Marie’s face turned into a frown. “Because I, too, once had someone who often found themselves in trouble trying to care for others. But, unlike then, we didn’t have anyone willing to take a chance on us to bail us out.” 

She nearly sank to her knees in disbelief. “You’re lying.” 

“I can write up a contract tonight if you know of at least ten kids who can start working in a few days.” She clasped a hand over Plumeria’s shoulder, “Come, you should eat. Audino can look after Guzma for a few moments. I feel like you need a friend more than anyone at this point to talk to.” 

She led Plumeria to the kitchen, the living room was spotless despite the obscene amount of towels and gauze used to clean Guzma up. At the table was a plate of what looked like chicken with tomatoes, corn, and black beans with grilled avocado on the side. She cut a piece of the juicy white meat, scooping some of the vegetables with it and chewed slowly. 

Tears fell from her eyes. When was the last time she had a home-cooked meal that someone else made? Something that wasn't a convenience store frozen ready-to-eat meal? Not even her own parents were kind enough to make these kinds of meals, and one of the grunts took the time to learn how to cook since everyone was running around trying to hustle for money. 

“Exactly how much money does your group need?” Marie started, watching as Plumeria shoveled down her food. “Slow down, dear. There’s more if you’d like. No one’s going to take your food.” 

“Can’t help it. I’m starving.” She replied, guzzling down the tea that was offered with the meal. “I missed out on the soup you sent home. The grunts didn’t lie, this is amazing cooking.” 

“Thank you, but please answer the question.” Marie asked again.

“Um...the power’s off. They shut down the electricity at Po Town.” Plumeria explained, feeling her face heat up like a child about to be in trouble. “We didn’t have the money to pay. We’re behind a couple grand, but we can cover about eight hundred of it now.” 

Marie rubbed her forehead. “And I’ve been told Po Town is in shambles. Is that true?” 

“Yes.” 

“How bad is the damage?” 

“I told you I lived in the only liveable room? That’s for the whole town. We literally have to charge people five hundred a use of the pokemon center because we’re running on a generator.” 

Marie sighed, pulling out her phone. “Where do I send the payment to?” 

“...I’m not asking you for charity after what we just tried to do.” Plumeria confessed. 

“And it's not charity. When Guzma’s up, he’ll be getting a lecture. The two of you will be working with me at the stall from when I say until when I say.” She tapped at a few buttons on her phone, “A portion of your paychecks will go back to me until its paid off. That goes for all the grunts I’m employing too, got it?” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Plumeria agreed. 

“Keep the eight hundred, work on fixing that town.” The older woman instructed, tapping away at her phone. “And tell your grunts the power is back on, and I advanced another couple grand ahead just in case.” She set her phone down, with the screen lit up still. Plumeria saw the number on the phone and almost choked on her food. 

“Holy shit!” She starred as the screen turned dark. “What the hell are you doing in Alola with that kind of money? Running a small bakery?” 

“I came into money I did not want. But I have a means of redeeming things that have been done with it.” She explained, inhaling sharply. “God I would kill for a cigarette though.” 

“You used to smoke?” 

“I quit after I got Abigail.” 

“You mean, after you got pregnant with Abigail.” 

“No, no. I was never pregnant with Abigail.” Marie chewed on her bottom lip. “But that stays between us, okay?” Plumeria raced through the thoughts in her head as Marie left the table, patting her back. “Finish up and get some sleep. I’ll take care of the dishes in the morning.” 

She wandered down the hall, checking up on every pokemon’s position before settling back into her rocking chair. She replaced the towel once more, humming softly as she reopened her copy of The Witcher. Lights went out one after another in the hall, and she guessed Plumeria had finally gone to bed. 

She moved her gaze onto Guzma, rocking softly in her chair. He looked at peace, and she wondered how it would feel to lay next to him. But not tonight, that would be inappropriate. She would never dare take advantage of someone who was injured and unconscious, that would be uncouth. Yet, as she rocked in her chair, she thought about the gang leader that was in her bed. 

She thought about how the monster in her bed ate his way into her heart, and wondered if he would stay come morning light or tear her heart out of her chest as he ran .


	5. Icarus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"Icarus is flying too close to the sun"_

Well, look who made their own bed and lied right down in it. Who made this mess for themselves, out of anger and fear and frustration, expecting someone else to clean it up? Who turned to the bottle of booze and attention of people who didn’t care for them? Who got close to the sun….

Marie heard a clattering of objects being shuffled down the hall, and shook awoke with a startle. Gengar was by her side, holding her hand, looking at her with a somber look. Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, she stared at the clock that glared back with red neon numbers ‘4:37 AM.’ Too early for Abigail to be up, and the bed beside her was empty. She stretched, pointing her toes and felt the fabric of a fuzzy blanket brush against her. 

When did she put a blanket on herself? If she remembered correctly, the last she looked at the clock was about 2 or 3 in the morning and then Gengar walked into the room and…

She glared at him. Little shit used hypnosis. “Gengar.” She scolded. “I didn’t tell you to use hypnosis on me. I had to watch Guzma.” 

“G-gengar?!” the pokemon stuttered, looking shocked. It pointed down the hall. “Gengar! Gengar!” 

“I’ll deal with you later.” She moved the blanket off herself, huffing as she got up and briskly walked down the hall, hoping that Guzma and Plumeria were around still. Thankfully, she could hear the duo bickering in the kitchen as some things were shuffled around. By the sounds of the argument, Plumeria was making coffee. 

“You’re a fucking idiot.” the girl’s voice accused. “Seriously, you want to continue with the plan?” 

“Without it, we don’t have the money to turn the power at Po Town back one!” Guzma sounded a bit dazed, either from the blood loss or he just woke up. Perhaps both? 

“And I told you, she paid the goddamn bill for us! We just have to help at her bakery!”

“How do you know that?” 

“If you’d look at your fuckin’ phone, you’d see the messaged from the grunts!” 

“The battery died!” 

“Seriously, G? You need to start using that goddamn brain between your ears or I swear to-” 

“Children, children, **children!** ” Marie interrupted, holding her head. Incoming headache, countdown initiated. “Please remember there is an 8 year old sleeping. And I have one simple rule: you wake her, you play with her until she falls asleep.” 

Plumeria, who was still wearing her pajamas, was browsing the cabinets for what Marie assumed was coffee beans. At least, judging by the clean and empty filer, she was thinking that. Guzma was at the table, shirtless but managed to wrap his jacket around his torso for warmth. Or perhaps more for his sense of decency? “Oh, um...Mornin’.” Plumeria smiled, closing the cabinets she was currently in. “I was trying to make coffee since G woke me up.” 

“I guessed as much,” Marie replied, standing next to her. “You were almost there. Next set of cabinets. I keep tea in there, too.” Plumeria saw the large container of ungrounded coffee beans and pulled it out, looking at it quizzically. Marie just patted the coffee bean grinder, “Much better coffee than buying pre-grounded canned bullshit.” 

Her gaze fell on Guzma, who simultaneously looked guilty and angry. Was that possible? Her sleep-suppressed mind couldn’t think of a word that fit his emotion currently, so she let it go. She opened the fridge and pulled out a few containers of creamer, then opened the lid to the sugar bowl on the table. “So,” she started, eyeballing Guzma. “You were looking to steal from me.” 

“Me?” He attempted to feign ignorance, and earned a glare from Plumeria. “Why would you think that?” 

“Your partner over there spilled the details, and I’m in zero mood to be nice to people playing games with me.” She mentioned, rubbing her forehead. “But I want to know what exactly you were looking to steal from me?” 

He opened his mouth a few times, like a fish taking in water. Plumeria just shoved a cup of made coffee in his hands, and gingerly handed one to Marie. The Kalos woman added a heavy dose of sweet cream to her coffee, stirring the mixture. “I can guess, but that makes the whole thing aggravating and boring.” 

“Your Sylveon.” Plumeria outed. “Someone was offering to buy it for a high price value.” 

“...you do realize it's old and about to die in a few years, right?” Marie questioned, sipping her coffee. 

“They didn’t care. It's only the unusual colored coat that they’re interested in.” 

“Well, I do care.” She hissed, shaking her head. “But since I paid for your area to have power restored to it, I don’t see the reason why you two are out here fighting like cats.” 

“He didn’t believe me when I told him you paid the bill.” Plumeria yawned, sipping on her coffee. “You were right, this tastes better.” 

Marie looked at Guzma, who was just curled up looking defeated. She felt her heart flutter, and for a moment she felt sorry for him. That moment turned into two, then three, and before she knew it the Team Skull boss had wiggled his way back into her good graces without even _trying_. She reached across the table, placing her hand on his forearm. “Hey?” She muttered, catching his gaze. Those stone-cold grey eyes peering into her red orbs. “Next time you need help, ask me for it, okay? A lot better that I tell you no than you taking a Scyther cut to your chest. You could’ve **died** , Guzma.” 

“Why do you care?” He snarled, pulling his arm away. 

She looked at him, hurt. “Because I genuinely like you and I think you’re overwhelmed, but you’re trying to do your best with your situation.” 

She set the cup down, half-empty, and started back down the hall. “Whether you stay or leave this morning, that’s up to you. But you will be expected to work what I put into your town off or I will be turning this whole situation over to the authorities.” Without looking at them, she made her way back to bed. “And Gengar’s keeping his eye on you two. Try to steal _anything_ of mine and you’ll regret it.” 

She crawled back into bed, pressing her face up to the fall. Fool. What an idiot she’d been. She had hoped he was sincerely into her like he had been acting. The flirty texts messages, those kisses to her forehead, the soft touches…

A ruse to get closer and steal something that was one of the most precious things to her. 

She saw a shadow from the light in the hall in her wall, not caring to look close enough she muttered. “I’m fine, Gengar. Don’t use hypnosis on me again.” 

“Actually, I wanted to chat.” 

She turned her head and saw Guzma staring at her, looking twitching and nervous. “Can I come in?” 

“Are you gonna pocket anything?” she sneered, turning her back to him again. 

“No,” He assured her, entering the room. “I promise, I’m not gonna steal from ya. I’ll never try that shit again.” He sat at the edge of her bed, looking at her back to him. The fabric pulled at her muscles as she curled up into a defensive ball. The scars were more predominant now and he wanted to reach out to touch them so badly, but curled the sheets in his hand instead. 

“Plum’s got her phone charged up. She showed me the messages from the grunts.” He attempted to explain, fidgeting. “I um...I didn’t expect that from you. Especially after she told you what the whole plan was.” His eyes were looking down at his feet now, his back to her. “Look, I’ll send the grunts your way when you want. I’ll do whatever you want as well. Just…” He scratched the back of his neck, sweating. When did it get hot? He was never an emotional guy, not one to work through his feelings but rather just let them bubble and boil until it became too much. 

Small arms wrapped around his torso, and he nearly jumped at the feeling. He had been so wrapped up in his own head that he didn’t notice Marie had moved behind him. Her hot breath was on his shoulder, her body weight leaning into his. “I’m sorry.” He forced himself to say it, hand moving to clutch hers on his chest. “Really.” 

“...was everything just a ruse?” she asked quietly, gripping tighter. 

“No.” 

“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” 

He spun himself around, grabbing her wrists and pinning her to the bed below him. He could overpower her right now. Just shut her up by choking her out, have her claw at his hands as she begged for air. The idea was quickly buried as she called out to him softly, and his spine shivered. He imagined having her bound, gagged, begging for his cock. 

Or rather...her having him bound up, begging for her pussy. Yes, that was his role. The sexual punching bag. Lusamine enjoyed his ideas of him being dominant, but he was always the servant to her master. She beat him, choked him, whipped him until he was begging for relief and sexual release. The bruises on his body were her reminder that she currently _owned_ him like a sex toy. He was Lusamine’s **fucking sex toy**. 

“Tell me to go away.” he begged. “Please.” 

“No.” She whispered, staying still under him. His wolfish gaze both calmed and unnerved her, her legs pressing together to try and dull the ache between them. 

“ _Please!_ ” He whined, bending down. “Tell me to go away, or else I’m going to eat you up right here, princess.” 

“You wouldn’t hurt me.” She told him, her soft gaze breaking down one of his mental walls. “You would’ve done so the first night you met me.” 

“I’m going to fucking destroy you one day.” He growled, his grip on her wrists tightening. He was just aching to have her buckle under his authority, less she push him down to the level Lusamine had him on. “You realize I can break you, doll?” 

“I’ve been through worse things than you.” She dared, finally pressing up against his hands. “Try me.” 

He broke character for a moment, his grip loosening. Marie took the advantage she had, slipping her hands out from his grip and entwining them around his neck. She brought her face close to his, those doe eyes staring into the pits of his dark soul. “Guzma,” she whispered, lips just a ghosts’ veil away from him. “What do you want?” 

“....kiss me.” He muttered, eyes widening at what he confessed. Shit, no!

But it was too late, her lips were on his and her hands were entangled in the messy white tuft. One of his hands went to the small of her back, holding her close to his body as he pulled her up with him and onto his lap. Mouths breaking for air, only for one to chase the other in a desperate desire to confirm that this was happening. That their kisses were real and that it wasn’t a dream. 

He broke contact finally and moved his mouth quickly down her neck and towards her chest, her body freezing up. “No!” She gasped, pushing his head off her. “Guzma, no.” He looked at her confused, a redness flushing his face. “I don’t want that kind of a relationship with you.” 

“The fuck you mean?” He snarled, eyes glaring at her. 

“I want this to be a slow and steady thing.” She muttered. “Guzma, I’m scared of getting used and tossed aside, okay?” 

He sighed, the aching hardness in his pants strained against the cotton fabric to be released. “Fine.” He muttered, nuzzling into her chest. “Only for you.” 

What was he saying? He was Lusamine’s until she was done with him. That was their arrangement: he got her the pokemon she desired and let her use his body as a sexual outlet, and in return he felt wanted and got money to support his gang. Was he going to throw away something _so good_ for this tiny woman? 

He looked up at her as she kissed his forehead, a smile plastering across her face. He sure as hell wanted to try. Her hands ran over the gauze and tape along his skin, gently gracing the bruises along his skin. “We need to change them soon.” She mentioned, and traced the long one on his chest. 

“Later.” He purred, tossing her back on the bed. She squeaked, he laughed, and the two of them were cuddled under thin blankets on her bed in moments. “Right now, your boy is tired.” 

“Is this the real you or are you still pretending?” she inquired, feeling him pull her body close to his. Arms encircled her small waist, careful of where his hands fell. Her face pressed against his chest, head laying on the toned muscle of his other arm. 

“Dunno myself…” He murmured, closing his eyes. “Just shut it and go to sleep, princess.” 

She huffed, grabbing at his jacket. “You can at least take your jacket off in my bed. Aren’t you uncomfortable? The zipper might make some of your injuries worse.” 

He groaned, pouting a little. “You kicked the blanket I gave you off a few times. You’re a hot sleeper, aren’t you?” A decent attempt at taking the spotlight off of him. 

The blanket…. “You mean it was you, and not Gengar, who put that blanket on me?” 

“Yep.” 

“Why?” 

“Dunno. Go to sleep and I’ll tell you in the morning.” 

She blushed faintly, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of him holding her - a touch starved woman. The last time anyone held her like this - or at all - was back when her dearest friend was alive and that was…

That was……

She felt Guzma’s breathing start to even out, and his muscles relaxing around her. Burying her head into his chest, she felt tears swell up in her eyes, praying to the gods that she wasn’t flying too close to the sun on this chance she was taking. 

Because her wings made of wax could only hold out for so long against the raging heat of her heart.


	6. Feral Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"Catch the shimmer of showering stars"_

The days to come proved to Guzma one thing: that despite the world trying to tame Marie’s passion, she hit them back with fire. Among one of the first days they were employed, someone tossed a cup of hot Tapu Coco at the one running the counter, screaming profanities at them about how they were useless kids. Before the surrogate dad of Team Skull could start flying fists, Marie had jumped the counter and pointed her finger right in the customers’ face. A screaming match ensued, which bought the police time to come and handcuff the assaulting customer. The cop got the man into the car, but spoke to Marie as if she had been the one to throw the piping hot cup. “Employing those hooligans will only result in more public disturbances.” 

“Then you better have a cop stationed nearby every goddamn day.” she hissed, getting right up in the cops face. “I’m not dismissing the kids because you all gave up on them! For a community that prides itself on being just that - an open fuckin’ community that helps each other - you’re quick to dismiss those who actually need help!” She hopped back into the kitchen, checking on the grunt who got doused in the warm liquid and waited for the ambulance to show up for the first responders to take over. Customers were complaining about not being served right away, but the small woman puffed out her chest and declared loud, “My kids come first! Either understand we cannot help you right now and come back later, or not at all!” 

The term she used struck Guzma’s emotions in a manner that he felt himself blushing. _’ My kids.’_ He stopped kneading the dough, seeing the crowd try to get rowdy with his girl. Nostrils flared, he went to move behind her and grabbed a pokeball out. Just when one of the customers reached for Marie, an old tanned hand grabbed and a loud voice bellowed, **“Enough!”**

Guzma met eyes with the stern gaze of Hala for a moment before turning to the residents of Hau’oli City. “That’s enough from all of you! How dare you pass judgement when you have no right?!” He shoved the customer away from the stand, putting himself between the customers and their target. “Begone, all of you, unless you want to take your business up with me!” 

The crowd muttered angrily, glaring at the Kahuna of Melemele Island. But what he said went, so the mob quickly dissolved into nothing. He turned to look at Guzma and Marie, his once stern face softening up. “And here I thought Nanu was sleep deprived and seeing things again.” He laughed, clasping a hand on Guzmas’ shoulder. 

“Hello.” Guzma sighed, moving Hala’s hand off his shoulder. “Thanks for the help, but we got it.” 

“....who is this?” Marie questioned, pointing to Hala. 

Oh right, she didn’t know about the Kahuna’s that run the islands. “Hala here is the big Kahuna of Melemele Island. They’re basically everyone’s _favorite_ person and the _chosen elite_ who get to watch over the guardian ruins.” Guzma rolled his eyes, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “They also preside over the islands cause they’re just that fuckin’ special.” 

Hala sighed, turning his attention to Marie. “Guzma’s still upset that he was refused the trial Captain title.” 

The younger male gritted his teeth, about to come back with a witty remark when one of the grunts called out, “Hey, is this bread ready?” 

Shit, the bread! “Hell no, it's not ready! Someone get me some goddamn lavender powder!” he yelled, going back to kneading the dough. He quickly learned that if the dough wasn’t kneaded enough, it could literally collapse in on itself in the oven and they’d have to start over from scratch. While these were the first few days actually working in the bakery, Marie had Plumeria tell the employed grunts to come to her house for training and practice. 

Marie turned her gaze to Hala, who was just smiling like an old….knowing….man….creepy. “Did you want something? It’s on the house.” 

“Oh, lets see!” Hala chuckled, looking over the display case of currently available sweets. “Hm...what about the Island Tarte Tatin?” He pointed at the custard tart dessert covered in local island fruits like pineapple, mango, and a few choppings of island-grown pokeberries. Marie readily served him a generous slice of the desert, watching the man take a large bite. 

A right, slightly tangy thick yogurt with added lemon and lime juice that cut through the mango and pineapple chunks, a sweet buttery crust that was slightly chewy hinting at orange extract. “Oh!” He exclaimed, taking another bite. “This is a Kalos dish?” 

“With an Alola twist.” Marie smiled, yawning. She was tired...between training a team of new bakers and running this place, her body was exhausting itself out before her mind. “Excuse me, I don’t mean to yawn before you. Haven’t been sleeping well as of late.” 

“It's perfectly fine.” Hala laughed. “If you’re interested in learning, we have an Alola yoga morning session that can help the body relax before bedtime and re-energize you before work.” 

“Do you?” she inquired, and Guzma stopped kneading the break for a second time. “And it actually works?” 

“It does indeed!” Hala laughed, watching as Guzma grew redder and redder. “Here, let me give you my information. I’m sure we can set you up with a beginners class. We usually start-” 

_SLAM!_ Guzma’s hand smacked the table, wrapping an arm around Marie’s waist and pulling her back into his body. “Old man, we need to close up shop today due to some broken items! Come back some other time, will ya?” With that, Guzma slammed the shutters in Hala’s face. 

“Hey! What’s your problem?” Marie yelled, trying to wiggle out of his grasp. 

“Party’s over, grunts. Get.” Guzma ordered, and the grunts stopped working. And as much as Marie kicked, yelled, and begged for them to get back to work, the grunts were more afraid of their leader than the small spitfire of a woman he was holding. 

The last grunt left, and he finally let up on his hold of her. “Seriously, what the hell?!” She screamed, twisting her body around to face his. “We’re already behind, you have a grunt in the hospital getting her burns looked at and questioned by the authorities, and you’re pissy because some old man wanted to give me yoga lessons?!” 

“He isn’t just some old man, Marie. He’s the fucking Kahuna.” Guzma growled. “Its perverse!” 

“He runs a class with - I’m sure - probably a dozen other people.” She tried to move from between his arms and try to at least get some baking done, but his arms were on either side of her pushing her against the counter. “Let me go, Guzma.” 

His eyes drilled into hers, and she saw it. Fear. Pure fear, like he was jealous of her going anywhere near him. Or was it because she’d be spending time with someone he felt threatened by? “Don’t go near him.” he begged, pressing his forehead against hers. “Please?” 

“What’re you so afraid of?” she questioned softly, hands grabbing at his apron. Big Bad Guzma, wearing an apron that was covered in flour and baking. What a sight that was…

“I’m afraid of him taking you away from me.” He quivered under her touch, closing his eyes to try and regain his composure. “Babe, I’ve done terrible things that they hate me for, and I **fuckin’ love it.** I love seeing them afraid of me, but I hate that they take it out on the grunts.” 

“You guys have done some bad things.” Marie sighed, relaxing a little. She was starting to learn that Guzma had a hard time with his emotions, specifically anything that didn’t require him to be the baddest man in Alola. “It’ll take time to undo the damage.” 

“I just don’t want him to convince you I’m bad for you.” He choked out, gripping the side of the counters so hard he was starting to dent the wood. “I’d go insane if you ran away from me.” 

She cupped his chin, forcing him to look at her. “I’m not giving up on you guys that easily.” 

He kissed her softly, hands traveling down her hips and pulling her lower body closer to him. He was needy, she’d give him that. Not that she minded, she adored him when he got super protective and needy because he was threatened by another male. But an old man like Hala? He was being ridiculous! 

“Guzma?” She whimpered, feeling him kiss her neck. “Guzma, please, not here!” 

“Then you better get us a room.” He growled against her skin, biting at the neck. “Plum’s got Abigail covered tonight. And don’t worry about the grunt in the hospital, I got some of the boys lookin’ after her. I promise, I’m not gonna fuck you if that’s what has you so scared. But I am gonna make you feel so goddamn good, baby.” 

She bit her lower lip, battling her emotions out against her logic. Would he find out? Would he know? How could he know unless she told him? She really wanted to, so badly, but the thought of someone touching her there again scared her. 

“F-fine.” She gave into her lust, pushing Guzma off her gently. They undid their aprons and dropped them into the hamper to be washed that weekend, locking up the shop before Guzma led her to the closest hotel he could think of. His fingers laced with hers the entire way, both of their faces a shade of red that caused some people to snicker at them. 

The hotel was one of the ones along the beach, with some nice views and everything. Guzma managed to sweet talk the receptionist into letting them rent one of the rooms and Marie had paid for it. She felt a little bad not going home to see Abigail, but got a text message and an image from Plumeria as soon as the couple hit the elevator showing what a good time Abigail was having at home. 

The room wasn’t something to write home about, minus the view. But the point of the hotel room was privacy and freedom, so in that sense it was perfect. And as soon as the door was shut behind them, Guzma had her pressed against the door with his lips locked on her. 

“You should shower!” She hissed, trying to put off the main event as much as she could. 

“Showered this morning.” He retorted, making quick work of his jacket and was working on his shirt next. 

“You’ve been working and you’re covered in flour!” 

“It's fine.” 

“Guzma!”

“Babe.” He stopped, dropping his shirt to the floor. The wounds from the night he attempted to rob her had healed over, bruises fading and the cuts became scars. He pulled her chin up to meet his gaze, pupils blown up with lust and longing. “Baby, what’s wrong?” 

“....can I be absolutely honest with you not?” she asked, and he froze. “I...The last time I had any sexual encounters, I did not consent to them.” 

“Whaddaya mean?” he backed off. “Marie, were you...were you raped?” 

There it was. That word. The action that described what her grandfather did to her many years ago, what was put into the police reports and medical evaluation. She felt the tears flow down her cheek, nodding softly. Guzma wiped them away with his thumb, whispering. “Baby, shhh.” He wrapped his hand around hers, pulling her away from the door and towards the bed. Sitting himself down first, he pulled the tearful Marie onto his lap and cradled her. “Tell me where the fucker is. I’ll kill them.” 

“Dead.” Marie choked out, trying to smile and laugh. “He died many years ago.” 

“Shit.” he cursed, rubbing her back. “Tell me someone beat me to killing him and it was horrible.” 

“Friend of mine poisoned him. And it wasn’t pretty.” She admitted. “They were never caught though.” 

Her hands ran over his bare chest, watching him kick off the worn-down white sneakers and expertly peel off the no-longer-white socks. He handled her carefully, one arm wrapped around the small of her back while the other took off her steel-toed shoes and cuffed socks. Frowning at the sight of her toes, he rubbed her free digits and asked, “What the hell happened?” 

“That would be my disgusting pig of a grandfather.” She sighed. “Well...partly, yes, but mostly no. He pushed me to be in ballet at a young age and I didn’t want to give it up after he told me to stop. He was attempting to groom me to marry one of his buddies kids and it switched so often that I eventually just told the old fuck to go rot in hell and did what I wanted.” 

“...you said it was your grandpa?” He clarified. “Was your grandpa the one who raped you?” 

A quick nod, and Guzma wrapped the missing arm around her. “Baby, I’m so sorry that happened to you. If we’re rushing, tell me. We can cuddle and watch a movie or somethin’.” His eyes watched her as she moved off his chest, standing before him. “I’m sorry, should I get my clothes back on?” 

She chewed on her bottom lip, grabbing the bottom of her baggy work shirt she was wearing and lifted it over her head. No bra, so Guzma got an instant view of small perky breasts instantly. “I want this.” She whispered, tossing her shirt off to where his own was. “Really, I do.” 

He reached out, pulling her back into his space and nuzzled his face against her bare chest. He kissed the valley between them softly, one hand moving from the back up to her breast to cup it, rolling the bud between his thumb, index, and middle finger. Her body started squirming, his lips kissing a trail softly to the other nipple before sucking on it, rolling it between his teeth. 

She yelped, grabbing at the white mass of hair as he pulled away from the breast he was sucking on. “Take off your pants, and come sit on my lap.” He instructed, letting her go from his embrace. She nearly fell to the floor from lack of preparation, but eagerly removed the remainder of her clothes and followed after him. He backed against the headboard, she moved between his legs and started kissing him, only for him to pull back after the first few. “Turn around and lemme hold you real tight baby. Spread those legs for me?” 

She hesitated for a moment, but swallowed her fears and did as she was told. Guzma saw the scars along her back, wincing at the thought of a few of them. Deep, quick lashes like she had been whipped. What exactly had she been doing back in Kalos? Her back pressed against his chest, legs opened on either side of his. He shook himself from his thoughts and wrapped one arm around her waist, helping her wrap one of her arms around his neck so he had easier access to her mouth and breasts. “So what’s up?” he snickered, the hand at her waist moving to caress her thighs. “How’s this feel?” 

“G-good.” She gulped, watching his hand. He was so gentle, he was half-expecting him to toss her around like a rag doll and use her to his delight. But here he was, moving the hand at her thighs up her stomach and cupping her breast, his free arm working its way to her vagina and stroked a little closer to her core. 

“Can I play with that pussy of yours, baby?” he panted, watching her nod vigorously. “Yeah, you like the sound of that, don’t you?” 

“Yes.” She whimpered, feeling his palm rub up against her clit. 

“I couldn’t hear you. You like the sound of that, don’t you?” he growled. 

“Yes, Guzma!” she squeaked, feeling his index finger rub along her slit. 

“Well, shit.” He moaned, pulling his hand away. “You’re fuckin’ soaked, princess. And this is just from me barely playin’ with you.” He licked her earlobe, whispering, “And its such a nice pussy too. I didn’t know you were the kind of girl to shave.” 

She mewled as his index finger moved up to rub her clit gently, teasing it out from his hood. “I-I-I hate the feeling of hair. I-i-it g-g-gets mattED!” She yelled at the end when he pinched her clit, bringing her own hand up to stifle her moans. 

“Nuh, uh, uh.” He laughed in her ear, “Put those hands down. Grab the sheets if you gotta, I’m gonna hear those moans comin’ out of your mouth.” 

She moved the hands to the sheets, gripped them tightly. Guzma kissed at her neck, inserting the middle finger and moaning at the tightness around him. “Ohhohoho, shit.” He hissed, pushing his way through to the knuckle. “Fuck, baby. You feel that? You’re so goddamn tight.” He retracted slowly, drawing out her moans and watching her clench the sheets so hard her knuckles were turning white. 

“Guzma!” She screamed, wiggling in his lap. His finger was fucking her hole slowly, his mouth moving from her earlobe to her neck, and his hand was still playing with her breast. His lips found a spot that caused her to gasp loudly, and they locked by sinking the teeth into her skin. It wasn’t unpleasant, but it did scare her a little and the wetness between her legs increased. 

“Oh, you like that?” He laughed against her neck, moving to another part of her shoulder to watch the action. “Fuck, yeah you do. You got my fingers drippin’ like a motherfucka.” He withdrew his fingers entirely, rubbing the liquid between his fingers while she whimpered in his lap. “Take it easy baby, I’m just gettin’ started.” He returned the missing digit to her hole, adding a second one to spread her open. “You’re such a fuckin’ eager thing, wiggling on my lap like you want my cock.” 

She stopped moving, looking at the fingers between her legs and imagined they were his dick instead. No, the thought scared her too much still, and he felt her body tense up. His hand left her breast, cupping her chin to look at him. Such a wolfish hunger in his eyes as he smiled wickedly, “But you’re not getting my cock tonight, little girl. I don’t think you’re ready for it. In fact, if I even just stick the head in, you’re gonna break under me.” He kissed her softly, letting her chin go and moved his hand back to her breast. “Don’t worry, baby. I’ll stick to our agreement for now.” He laughed, quickening his pace of banging his fingers into her sex. “You feel good, though?” 

“I can’t...fuck…” Marie whimpered, grabbing his arm. “G-guzma, please! It's too much!” 

“Marie, baby, cum for me.” He begged, kissing that spot on her neck again and scraping his teeth against it. “I got you. I promise, I got you. Just cum for me baby. Please!” 

She wasn’t sure what was happening, but hearing him say that caused something to snap in her. Her hips moved against his fingers, her head tossed back as she screamed his name to the heavens above. Something warm was dripping between her legs and she whimpered, riding out whatever the fuck happened on his fingers until her body was begging for her to relax. “What...what was that?” she panted, heaving her back off of his chest. 

“You just came for me.” Guzma laughed, pulling his hand up to his face. He rubbed the liquid and licked it carefully, humming in delight. “Damn...next time I think I’m gonna have to go down on you.” 

She turned and looked at him confused. “Go down on me?” 

“Eat your pussy.” He laughed, sucking on his fingers. “Damn, did you have bad sex partners or what?” 

She blushed, “I um...You are the first person I’ve been intimate with, Guzma.” 

Wait...wait, what? 

“Nah, nah, you have a kid.” He snickered, stopping at her serious face. “Wait...how the hell is that possible?” 

“Abigail is not my flesh and blood child.” Marie explained. “She is...My friends adopted her, and they named me as godparent in their will. She was too young when the accident happened and-” 

He pulled her into a hug, hands wrapped tight around her shoulders. “Damn, baby, you’ve been through a lot.” He chuckled weakly. “We both have. But this world is horrible, ain’t it?” 

“It's beautiful.” She retorted, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Horrible and beautiful, and I wouldn’t have done anything different in my life so far despite all the pain.” 

He nuzzled into her hair, hands tracing the scars along her back. Two people with abusive family, having overcome the horrors life threw at them, and yet how differently they ended up becoming. Two wild-hearted people who shunned what society pushed upon them, now naked to each other and showing nothing more than who they are. 

He pulled her hair out of his usual messy bun, watching the mass fall around her shoulders. Black waves of hair that reminded Guzma of the sea on a stormy night, one of the most times parts of the island. He kissed her softly, grabbing her hair gently and pulling her down to lay on the bed with him. 

Two ferals hearts, loving each other like they had been finally freed from captivity.


	7. Takeaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"Before I love you"_

He should’ve left before it was too late. He should leave before she fell in love with him, and he ruined his plans for her. What was this woman compared to Lusamine, anyways? He wanted something with no strings attached, so when Alola realized their mistake he could leave his lap empty for all the women who would bow before him. He had a plan, so how the fuck did he get here? 

He laid in bed next to Marie. It had been a few weeks since they spent the night at the hotel, and he found himself at her side more and more often. The grunts of Team Skull came around the house often enough to the point where one of them was home for Abigail when she got off school. Small pots and skillets were replaced by woks, large pots that had to be cooked outside, and an army of teenagers listening to a tiny woman in the kitchen barking orders. It was hysterical to him, seeing his grunts who were so enthusiastic about anarchy and ‘sticking it to the man’ listen to this petite chef. Then someone had to call her **“Mama Skull.”**

He traced her lips with his thumb, paranoia keeping him awake. Hearing that come from his grunts stirred something inside him. He didn’t realize how far down the rabbit hole he was with her. He, the Big Bad Guzma, baddest man of Alola, was falling for this tiny foreign pastry chef and her 8 year old. He, the ‘Unbeatable’ of Team Skull, had taken an uncalculated risk getting close to this woman. She was something he never dreamed of as perfect. No, perfect to him was busty and tall with an attitude that can rival his and long nails that would mark up his back after a wild night of experienced sex. 

Yet, here she was. Small, itty bitty titty, virgin, and bit her nails down to where it looked almost painful. Instead of heels, he got sneakers. Instead of make-up, he got messy hair. Instead of street-wise, he got...well...Marie had a soft kind of intelligence that he guessed came with mothers. His mom would act like that sometimes, but he always chalked it up to the abuse his dad put them through. Maybe it was both? 

And that thought alone terrified him. His dad. The asshole on Route 2 that took golf clubs to him and his mom on a nightly basis. He ran out on them as he got older, and he never looked back. Being denied the trial Captain title burned him, because he wanted that title so bad to show to his old man the person he became without them. So he formed Team Skull and became a sort of foster dad to other teens who ran away from their home. Abused, neglected, torn teenagers who he gave a form of a home to. 

And she was _too good_ for that world. 

She had been abused too, he remembered her tell him about her grandfather. The sick bastard who took advantage of a teenager had been poisoned by one of her friends. Anytime Guzma asked about her friend, she just smiled sadly and told him she wasn’t ready yet. What if that person was who Marie really loved? What if they were alive? Oh god, **what if she would leave him for them?**

He scrambled out of the bed, awakening the chubby Sylveon that was snoozing at their feet. Like hell he was going to be used and tossed aside without his own goddamn consent! What he had with Lusamine was fine, that worked with him because they agreed to it! But if this rich bitch thought he could just become another fuck toy for another pussy, she had another thing coming. 

“Guzma?” 

He stared at her in awe, watching her look at him with tired eyes. “Baby, what are you doing?” 

“Leaving.” He snarled, tossing his pants on and making his way out to the door. He heard her scramble out of the bed, calling his name. But the paranoia had his fingers sunk deep into his skull, itching and scratching all the right places that made him tick. Made him overthink this whole thing and make him falsely realize that this woman was using him like many others had before him. 

He reached the door when Marie came up behind him, wrapping an arm around his waist and pushing her hand against the door. “Please! What happened? What’s going on?!” 

“You’re using me, aren’t you?” He hissed, pushing her off of him. Red eyes stared up at him with hurt and fear. “You’re like every other bitch on these islands. Think you can have your way with the boss and then toss me aside once you’ve had your fill?” 

“What are you talking about?” She gasped, trying to not be angry. “What have I done to make you think this way about our relationship?” 

“You won’t fuckin’ tell me about who your friend is!” He yelled, waking up the Herdier who was sleeping by the door. “So what, you fuckin’ them too?!” 

She clenched her fist, shouting back, “They’re fucking, dead, Guzma! And if you haven’t noticed, I’m not having sex with a corpse!” Tears ran down her face as she continued, “Fine, you want the whole detail? The friend who poisoned my Grandpa is also Abigail’s adoptive mom! She and her wife were killed in a fuckin’ car accident coming to see me at the Kalos Championship! Happy, you ass?!” 

He paused opening the door, his hand clenching the knob as she continued. “They were slammed by a truck, the driver was intoxicated. They died at the hospital, and I forfeited my match to try and make it to them in time.” He looked back at her, watching her body shake and her eyes staring into his with an empty gaze. “I didn’t make it in time. She was asking for me, asking where I was. She wanted to know I had Abigail before she passed, and I couldn’t give her fucking that after she saved my goddamn life!” 

“Babe…” He started, reaching out to her. “I had no idea-” 

“She did love me.” She couldn’t hear him, or else outright refused to. “She loved me and had always wished I loved her back. But I couldn’t, not the way she wanted. So she settled for being my best friend, my protector, and then she met her wife. The two of them were so happy, their wedding was gorgeous, and they had me as the Best Lass.” Her legs were shaking, and her eyes didn’t meet his gaze anymore. “When they adopted Abigail, they asked me to be the godmother. I couldn’t refuse them! They had been my support, my stones, my everything in this little fucked up family we had. 

Then came the day I had been training for. I had all the badges, proved myself in every way possible, and I was ready to take on the Kalos Champion herself. They had front row seats to my battle against Diantha, and after the first round when they didn’t show up I knew something was wrong. The battle rep flagged us both over and told me the news. The fucker asked me if I wanted to continue the fight or not, and told me if I forfeited I’d have to wait another year before I could challenge again. Of course I left, my best friends were in the hospital dying!” Her lower lip trembled, and Guzma reached out to wrap his arms around her. “I didn’t make it! I didn’t make it!” 

Guilt swallowed him now, taking place of where his anxiety once was. _Stupid boy,_ the voice in his head called him. It sounded so much like his dad, even the sneer was on point. _Always jumping to the worst scenarios! You’re gonna fuckin’ ruin someone good one day!_

Hadn’t he already? Marie hiccuped in his arms, and Audino had been alerted by Herdier from wherever she slept. The calming pokemon placed her hand on Marie’s, big blue eyes staring at the couple with worry. Guzma felt her about to crumble under her own weight, and lowered them to the ground. He held on right, letting her bawl until either she stopped on her own or Audino’s power was working. He couldn’t figure out which one it was, and he wasn’t going to ask. 

“I’m sorry.” He whispered finally, waiting until she was hyperventilating. “I’ve been up all night overthinkin’ shit and I just-” 

“Why would you think I’d do that to you?” Marie sniffled, curled up into his chest. 

Well, she opened up to him. Now it was his turn. “My dad...used to tell me that I ruin people. I ruined my ma, I ruined him, and I ruined a lot of people I cared for. He’d beat me and my ma with his fuckin’ golf clubs telling us how we fucked up his life and shit like that. That we were actin’ ungrateful for the shit he did. So I started to think how fuckin’ amazin’ you are and I just…” 

He stopped, this whole night wrecking his head. As if the shit he went through in life wasn’t enough, he was adding his issues to her already messed up life. “Baby, I’m sorry. If you want me to go, I’ll go.” 

“...do you want to go?” she asked meekly, her fingers gripping at his shirt. 

“No.” he murmured, encasing her in his arms and wrapping her up in his jacket. “Hell, I’m sorry. I should’ve just asked, but I’m a stupid mothe-” Her lips pressed against his, hands cupping his face. So loving, so sweet….He melted into her, feeling his worries and anxiety wash away like scum. She was his water, the sweet saving grace of the demons inside his head. 

“You belittle yourself too much.” She murmured, pressing her forehead against his. “You need to stop it. You’re not helping your mental health doing that.” 

“Heh, yeah but I’m too stubborn.” He tried to laugh, but it came out more like a choke. “Ah, well. You’re gonna have to deal with my stubborn ass now.” 

“We can work on it.” She muttered, laying her forehead on his shoulder. “We can work on us, too.” 

_Us._ Words she used that gave him hope and made his soul flutter. He cradled her in his arm, sitting on the floor in silence and darkness, save for the pokemon that was snoring down the hall. “Maybe we can work on that snoring creature, too.” 

“Leave Machamp alone.” She yawned, poking his chest. “Someone else in this house snores louder than him when they stay over.” 

“Yeah, who?” 

“You.” 

“Nah, ya boy does? Really?” 

She chuckled a little, and he felt better. Nice to know he didn’t fuck up too badly. “If I did something to assure you that I wouldn’t leave, would it help?” 

He hummed in thought, “Yeah, but I’m not wearing a damn ring.” 

“Not thinking that far.” She explained, moving off of him and getting up. “How do you feel about necklaces?” 

“...like the girly ones?” He curled his nose up at that, scrunching his face in confusion. “Babe, I don’t play for that team. Ya boy may have fucked around with guys before, but I have never been the catcher.” 

“...thanks for the information, but that’s not what I had in mind.” She helped him up off the floor, holding his hand as she walked him back to the bedroom. “Give me a few days. It’ll be a surprise for you, okay?” 

He rolled his eyes, shaking his head. As they passed by Abigail’s room, he paused and looked on at the small girl that was curled up against something. After squinting his eyes, he scoffed in disbelief. “I don’t believe this. Ya girl’s got my Wimpod whipped!” 

Marie looked inside the bedroom, chuckling. “I think Sylveon may have let him out.” 

Guzma chewed on his lower lip, thinking. “Hey, what do you think about me giving Abi that Wimpod?” 

She looked at him, shocked. “Babe, are you sure? I mean, you’re very protective of your bug pokemon.” 

“Yeah, but that little guy doesn’t snuggle up to me like he does to her.” He noted, clicking his tongue. His arm wrapped around Marie’s shoulder, pulling her close. Did he want this? Did he want this soft, domesticated life working at a pastry cafe fostering a bunch of teens? 

Marie pulled him back into the bedroom finally, crawling into bed and watching him undress for the second time that night. “We really need to get you a pair of pajamas for here.” 

“I hate them.” Guzma yawned, pulling off his pants and crawling into bed with Marie with just his boxers on. “Besides, I love feelin’ you pressed up against me.” 

“Says the guy who just tried to flee the house.” she mentioned, waiting for him to get comfortable before curling up with her head on his chest. 

“I said I was sorry, didn’t I?” He huffed, closing his eyes. “Damn, you women hold grudges.” 

“Not a grudge.” Marie commented. “Just...not going to be easy to forget that.” 

He rubbed her back, staring up at the ceiling. “...tell me about her?” 

“Who?” 

“Abi’s mom.” He looked down at her. “Ya know, your friend?” 

Marie thought quietly, then pulled herself up on her elbow, leaning over him on his chest. “Her name was Sayla. She was my playmate growing up. Her dad knew my dad and after my parents died, she was allowed over at my grandfather’s as my only playmate. She was this beautiful shade of dark chocolate and her hair was always a different color once she could dye it. She hated my grandpa for many things, and would often sneak over forbidden things for me like candy and soda.” 

Guzma listened intently, smiling. “When she found out what my Grandpa had done, she captured a Seviper and harnessed its poison. She snuck a few drops into his afternoon tea one day, and he died shortly after. Because of my family’s influence back in Kalos, we managed to keep the real reason of death under wraps and convinced the public it was just his old age.” 

She laid her head on his chest, thinking. “She really wanted me to do something different afterwards. Like cut my hair or get a tattoo or even a piercing. But I...I couldn’t. I was so afraid of the consequences, even after that old ass died. I watched him get buried and thought to myself how I was finally free. But you’re never free from your dad either, are you?” 

“No.” He grunted, closing his eyes. “And it sucks.” 

He played with her long hair, feeling the hefty weight of it in his hands. “You know, one of the grunts could cut your hair.” 

“I don’t know.” Marie muttered. 

“Marie.” He murmured, “Cutting your hair isn’t going to make you any less of a person than you are now. You define you, not how you look or your money. Hell, shave it all off for all I care. I’ll still think you’re the sexiest girl around.” 

There was a long pause, in which Guzma thought he crossed a line again, before Marie uttered, “Fine. But who is it?” 

“You remember Chelsea, yeah?” He sighed in relief. 

“You mean the one who always looks tired? Pink hair? With a Snubull and the dozens of Meowth plushies?” Marie tried to recall. 

“Yeah, that’s the one! She can do your hair! Hell, she does it for the entire squad already.” He softly laughed. “She loves you! And she’s gonna get a kick outta doin’ your hair, baby!” He could feel her blush by touching her cheek, the temperature of her cheek giving off the emotions she was feeling. “The entire Team Skull loves you, baby. They called you Mama Skull, for fucks’ sake. Hell, they don’t even call me dad.” 

“I was wondering if you were gonna say something about that.” She murmured, burying her head between his chest. “God dammit, why did I have to fall for a guy fostering a dozen kids?” 

He laughed, burying his own nose into her hair. “Dunno. Why did I fall for a girl whose gonna make it super fuckin’ hard to keep this shapely bod? Jesus, baby, I’ve gained weight since we met.” 

“...I think the dad bod is hot.” She whispered, to which Guzma replied with a loud and hearty laugh that terrified the fat old Sylveon on the bed. “Oh, shit! You made him mad!” 

“He’ll get over it!” Guzma laughed, physically relaxing. He felt the tension in his muscles leave him and his eyes slowly fluttering. “Goodnight Mae-Mae.” 

She was silent for a moment, before snuggling into his body comfortably and muttering, “Night, G-man.” 

He looked at the clock one more time before closing his eyes. It had been a few hours since he had his anxiety attack, and he was having some leftover feelings. But feeling Marie in his arms made things better. Yeah, he could leave before he really fell in love with her. Before he was someone she left behind, he could break her heart so he couldn’t break his. But with the promise of whatever she was doing to help ease his anxiety,kept him by her, and his curiosity was eager to see what she was going to do. But there was still one thing Guzma was putting off; breaking the pleasure aspect of his relationship with Lusamine. He hadn’t had sex with Lusamine since he became an official-unofficial couple with Marie, so he didn’t think he needed to. Besides, no strings attached meant she would understand if he said no, right? 

…right?


	8. Glorious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"I feel glorious"_

She had a new attitude and a new lease on life here in Alola. Some peace of mind from her troubles back in Kalos, chasing dreams without even sleeping. Life hadn’t gone exactly how she wanted it to, but then again who was she to complain? Guzma had been a welcoming adjustment, and so was Team Skull. She started to resent the Alola locals who sneered and avoided her stall when it wasn’t her at the register, but a delinquent who was mistreated and abused at their home so they ran off. Ever since that incident with the coffee, a cop had been stationed by every day. Seemed to be a Kahuna of another island, or so Guzma told her. Nanu, who was an older male with greying hair and sleepy eyes, would sit down the street from their shop. Marie bought him coffee a few times, just silently placing the dark roast cup and a bag of sweets before him as a silent thanks. He didn’t dump it out, thankfully. He would watch him, finding out shortly he had a sweet tooth as he usually added six creams and six or seven sugars to his coffee. Eventually she started making his coffee just how he liked it, and in response he started to talk to her. 

“You know, since you started employing the grunts, I’ve been getting less and less calls about them.” Nanu yawned, sipping his coffee. 

“Oh, yeah?” Marie smirked. “So, they just needed a place to fit in. Like they were a community without a purpose, right?” 

“Well, they wrecked enough havoc on Po Town.” Nanu retorted. “That’s where a lot of them came from. Their parents wont even file missing children reports, and until they do something that gets them in jail I legally can’t do anything.” 

The woman frowned, placing her hands on her hips. “You can’t do anything? Why?” 

“Because they’re no longer in an abusive home, so I can’t get the parents. And because the parents aren’t reporting the kids, I can’t get the kids. See the problem?” He murmured, sipping his coffee and opening his bag to see a pastry. “Oh, what’s that?” 

“It's a Beignet.” Marie muttered, watching Nanu munch on the square crispy pastry with powdered sugar. 

“Well, anyways, Hala asked me to stand by here when you’re open. You’re causing a bit of a riot with those kids.” There was a mischievous glint in his eye. “And I heard they started calling you Mama Skull. Be careful, kid. You’re asking for trouble at this point.” 

“Good, I welcome it!” She huffed, turning on her heels and heading back to her shop. “Just make sure you’re here for riot control when your conservative asses try that shit again!” He heard the Kahuna laugh as she entered the stall, getting a worried look from Guzma. 

After the shop closed up that day, some of the grunts offered to stay behind and clean so Marie and Guzma could go home. Though she was eager to leave the stall, she wanted to make sure the kitchen was spotless the next day. However, Guzma quieted any concerns by threatening the grunts with extended dish duties if it wasn’t properly cleaned before dragging his girlfriend home. 

...were they dating? He never made it official, the words never left his mouth. But the way he was holding her hand, laying in her bed, the kisses he gave her….It spoke of that starved desperation for human emotion and touch. Specifically her touch and emotion. Which made her all the more self assured about what she had been planning for them. 

Which, so it seems, that Guzma had been planning something for her. More specifically, a few people that congregated at their home. Marie recognized Chelsea, the pink-haired grunt, who dashed out the home and tackled the older woman with a hug. “Ohmigod, Mama Skull! Guzma told me you wanted your hair cut and I was up, like, all night going though all my magazines!” 

A haircut? Now? Oh no. 

“Um, there might be some misunderstanding!” Marie chuckled nervously, earning a look of concern from Guzma. “I, um, I’ve been playing with the idea of getting it cut but I wasn’t sure.” 

“Babe,” Guzma warned, looking at her. “You should do this. You’re sweating in the kitchen, and with thick hair like yours you’re gonna get heat exhaustion soon enough. Besides, there’s no one who will tell you what to do with your hair.” 

Chelsea smiled, “Oh yeah! G was tellin’ us how back in Kalos you were like this model or somethin’ and had like this strict as fuck dress code!” Well, he wasn’t exactly lying to them, but it did make her feel a little better that Guzma had explained some parts to the grunt before her. “So, like, Plum’s and I picked out a haircut for ya! Please, Mama Skull? It’ll mean, like, the world to me!” 

Well, it was time wasn’t it? One of the last few things that tied her to her past. “Alright, I’m in your hands Chelsea.” 

Guzma sighed in relief, then tapped Chelsea on the shoulder with his knuckles. “You better take care of my boo, bitch. Don’t go making her some Oompa Loompa lookin’ motherfucka.” He was snickering in a teasing manner, which made Marie feel more at ease. He had that role with his grunts, surrogate dad figure and teasing friendly boss. 

“Ohmigod, the one time I fuck up someone’s hair and you never let me live it down!” Chelsea rolled her eyes, strutting back into the house with Marie in tow. “Like, you want me to stop lighting your hair? It aint easy making black that snowy ass white color, dick.” 

“Nah, nah! You don’t gotta stop with my hair, bitch. Just, ya know, Imma be real with you. Don’t make my boo look stupid or Imma find someone else to do her hair.” Guzma retorted, closing the door behind them. Abigail was on the couch, watching some show with Plumeria and a blue-haired grunt known as Brandon. Turns out, as Marie started to learn about the Team, Brandon was one of the original grunts she beat up on the beach. He was Chelsea’s boyfriend of a couple years and when he wasn’t wearing that face mask he had a long scar from the left corner of his mouth going up his cheek. “Sup, scrubs?!” 

“Guzma!” Brandon smiled, waving. “Hey, Ma!” 

“Brandon, did you remove your shoes?” Marie asked, seeing one less pair of shoes at the door than there were people in her house. 

“Oops, sorry Ma!” Brandon moved off the couch to remove his street shoes at the door. “I didn’t track anything nasty in, promise.” 

“I know, but I do want to keep the carpet clean a little bit longer. Can you run the vacuum tomorrow when I’m at work?” 

“Yeah, sure, Ma!” Brandon smiled, kissing his girlfriend. “Boss said my girls’ giving you a haircut! You ready for this?” 

“It's a haircut, Brandon, not a once-in-a-lifetime-event.” Plumeria sighed. “But Chelsea does give the best haircuts this side of Alola.” She had Abigail curled up against her, scratching the hair of the girl with the long black locks. “Abi might need a cut, too.” 

“Mom’s first, then Abi!” Chelsea yipped, grabbing Marie by the hand and dragging her out to the back porch. “Boss has dinner covered, and I wanna get started like right now!” 

Marie was a little shocked to see the makeshift parlor on her porch. A lawn chair, her patio furniture used to display the tools and a water spray bottle, and a few clippings from a magazine were laid about. She sat in the chair, a long black wrap surrounded her body from the neck down. Chelsea was feeling up Marie’s hair, removing the bun and letting the wavy locks roll down. “Wow, G was right. You got some thick hair, Ma!” 

“...my dad had thick hair.” She laughed nervously. “One of the things I inherited from him.” 

“And you have poliosis?” Chelsea commented, combing through the white hairs. “That’s pretty cool! Ever think about dyin’ it? Could make it wicked colors!” 

“No, I’m pretty happy with it.” Marie gulped, starting to sweat a little from nerves getting to her. 

Chelsea started humming, and Marie felt her hair getting pulled back into a low ponytail. The end reached about between her shoulder blades, tickling her skin. “Ready, Ma?” Chelsea cooed, and Marie felt the quick chopping of the scissors. 

That was it. 

Chelsea presented her with the remains of the cut, a good foot-long strand of long black hair. “See? Feelin’ better already ain’t...Ma? Ma, you okay?” 

Oh, her vision was blurry. Was she crying? She felt her face, the sting of hot tears pricking her eyes and dripping down her cheek. Yep. Yep, she was crying. “Oh, I’m...I’m fine.” Marie muttered, trying to smile. But Chelsea wasn’t buying her act, and ran into the house to get Guzma. 

She stared at the length of her hair in her hands, unwavering. Guzma approached ehr eventually, kneeling before her. “Hey, you okay?” He muttered, rubbing her forearm. 

“Yeah, just…” She looked at the hair. “This...I feel so stupid. I think he’s gonna crawl out of his hole and belittle me for this, but its my life and my hair. Right?” 

“Exactly.” Guzma muttered, cupping her cheek with his hand. “Baby, if you wanna stop here, Chels can finish up and we’ll have dinner. I ordered pizza. Hope you don’t mind a little bit of us eating out tonight.” 

“...I wanna keep going.” She muttered. “As afraid as I am, I feel better. I’m sorry, I feel bad for scaring Chelsea off.” 

“Don’t worry.” He laughed. “She’s used to it. Got a couple of grunts who never had a haircut outside of what their mama and pops let them have. Trust me, she’s used to the crying. She’s just scared because you’re not a grunt and you’re my girl.” 

_My girl_. “Guzma...are we officially dating?” 

“...I like to think we are.” He muttered, pulling her forward to kiss her forehead. “Are we?” 

“I’d like to think so.” She murmured, still clutching the rope of hair in her hands. 

“Then we are. Simple, right?” He bumped his nose against hers, humming. “I’ll send Chels back out here. Try not to torment the poor girl anymore, okay?” 

“I should tell you that.” She teased, watching his swagger back into the house. “Hey, G-man? Thanks.” 

“Anytime, Mae-Mae.” He winked at her, calling into the house. “Okay, Chels! You’re safe from catchin’ hands with ya boy today! Wasn’t you!” 

“Oh thank god!” 

The pink-haired woman came back out, looking relieved. “Sorry, Ma! You started cryin’ and I thought I fucked up!” 

“You’re perfectly fine.” Marie replied, feeling a little better. “Honestly, I’ve never had hair this short.” 

“I mean, we can stop? Plum’s got long ass hair, but its like super thin.” Chelsea commented, standing behind Marie. 

“No, no. Keep going, please. Keep cutting.” She gripped the stands in her hands, closing her eyes. “Please. I really need to do this.” 

Silently, Chelsea continued to cut and spray Marie’s hair with the water. _Snip_ , there went every time he tried to change her. _Snip_ , every time he told her girls and boys were supposed to do certain things and he denied her the pleasures she sought out today. _Chop_ , there went her lonely nights cuddled against a “defective” Sylveon who licked away her tears after he beat her. 

_Snip, snip, shhhrk._ For every whip mark, for every derogatory comment, for every night he violated her…

“All done!” 

She broke herself from her thoughts, reaching up to feel her hair. It was so much shorter and lighter, she could feel the sun on her neck as it was setting. “I thinned it out, so you should feel better working in the bakery! Hopefully you won’t be so sweaty anymore!” 

Chelsea handed over a hand mirror, and Marie was shocked to see herself. The black part of her hair was curling up more without the added weight of the length, resting at the chin-length of her face. The white bangs were just trimmed, but were still longer than the back part of her hair. “Whatcha think?” 

“...I love it.” She smiled, choking back tears. She felt free, weightless, and like the burden of many years was lifted off her shoulders. It was a good event to a new chapter in her life. 

“You seriously had some thick-ass hair.” Chelsea laughed, pointing to the pile of black mass that was at their feet. “Like, holy hell! Would think we had some type of Zorua running around!” Chelsea swept the hair off the porch, reaching for the braid Marie had in her hand. “I can take care of that.” 

She gave it up willingly, watching Chelsea undo the band and let the strands fall off the porch. “Some bird pokemon will use them for their nest.” She explained, stretching. 

“....why are you in Team Skull?’ Marie questioned randomly. Chelsea was a pretty girl, with a sweet bubbly attitude and a talent. 

“My dad said cuttin’ hair was a whore’s job.” Chelsea stated matter-of-factly. “He hit Brandon and gave him that nasty ass scar. I ran away because I love what I do and I love Brandon.” 

“Why did he hit Brandon?” Marie stood up, rubbing her neck. It felt weird at first, not feeling her hair. 

“Cause Brandon wants to run a tattoo parlor and told my dad he was gonna support me running a hair salon.” Chelsea stated. “My dad was very traditionalist. He had me go to all the hula dance classes even though I hated them. So the thought of me owning a business, which to him was like a man’s job, was out of the question.” 

“I’m sorry to hear that.” She turned and hugged Chelsea. “Cutting hair isn’t a whore’s job, it's a good job and it makes you happy.” 

Chelsea returned the hug, squishing the small woman tightly. “I know. Thanks, Ma. I needed to hear that.” 

The two women went back into the house, and Abigail gasped. “Mama! You’re so pretty!” The 8 year old giggled, running up to her mother as Marie bent down so her kid could run her hands through her hair. “Can I have a haircut too?” 

“Tomorrow, kid!” Chelsea chuckled, ruffling Abi’s hair. “I’m hungry and I wanna eat! Where’s the boss?” 

“Outside gettin’ food.” Plumeria sighed, pointing to the white-haired male yelling profanity at the delivery driver who was flipping them off. “Driver is one of those assholes who threatened to call the cops as soon as he saw us. He got Nanu who thankfully told the driver to leave the shit at the door and walk. And it spiraled from there.” 

“...stupid ass fuckers!” Guzma huffed as Brandon held the door open so they could bring in the pizza. “Callin’ the cops just cause we ain’t in Po Town! I oughta track his ass down and curb stomp the arrogant son-of-a-” 

“Guzma!” Plumeria yelled. “Language with small children!” 

“Oh, whatever! You didn’t see...him…” Guzma paused his thoughts, seeing Marie with her finished cut. He put the pizza boxes down on the counter, approaching Marie. He cupped her chin, gently twisting her head side to side. “Goddamn, Chels. You can work fuckin’ miracles.” 

“I wasn’t that bad looking before, was I?” Marie teased. 

“Nah, baby, but you had some thick ass hair I was worried about. Was thinking Chels was gonna break some tools workin’ on you.” He laughed, pulling her in for a kiss. “You’re still beautiful, baby.” 

Brandon rolled his eyes as he handed over some cash to Chels, and Marie caught that. “Kids?” 

“I had a bet with Brandon that Guzma was gonna kiss you while we were over. Brandon was like, ‘No way, the boss is too hardcore for that shit!’ But I got the cash now!” Chelsea laughed, kissing her boyfriend. “Guzma doesn’t kiss most of his girlfriends we’ve met in the presence of us grunts. You’re, like, the first!” 

“Well, I am honored.” Marie snickered, seeing Guzma turning red but keeping a stern face. He forgot he had a bad ass reputation to hold up, which he had successfully done with the others so far in his life. But this little pastry chef brought out the softer side of him.

“And I’m starvin’! Let's just eat, a’ight?” He coughed, letting Marie go and moving back over to the kitchen to grab plates. “Brandon’s in charge of dishes tonight!” 

“Boss, c’mon, man. Chels and I came over from-” 

“Chels did my girl’s hair, and I didn’t hear her bitch! You gotta contribute to this house, dude! Do the dishes or you don’t eat!” 

“Boss!” 

“Brandon, stop fighting.” 

“Yes, Mom.” 

Marie chuckled, being handed a plate and got Abigail served up first with a few slices of pepperoni pizza. Guzma grabbed a few slices of the carnivore, and Marie grabbed a mix between carnivore and one with spicy buffalo chicken and celery bits. She took a spot on the couch next to Guzma, and Abi took one next to her. Brandon and Chels took the love seat, and Plum sat on the other side of Abigail with one of her plushies she brought over. The TV was playing some dramatic suspense series, and everyone else seemed to be interested in it. 

Guzma finished his pizza and wrapped an arm around Marie, playing with her hair as she finished her slices and set her plate on top of his. Her arm wrapped around the back of his waist between him and the couch while the other held a very tired, but still very awake Abigail. This was her new life, and it was chaotically perfect. No, it was better than that. 

It was **glorious.**


	9. Send Them off!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"Set me free from my jealousy"_

His demons were running around in his head on a daily basis, feeding on the insecurities he had. _She’s going to leave you for another man. You’re worthless. You’re a freak and a liar. Who the hell would want you around as anything more than a fuck toy?_ And for a few moments a day he believed them, until Marie placed her healing hand on his chest to pull him out of his mental trance, like she was ritually cleaning him. He started getting better and better, but he couldn’t rely on Marie to be around him 24/7. He needed to be in Po Town some nights, he still had so many teens to look after. 

Then came the day she texted him while he was at Po Town dealing with some repairs around the mansion. She had asked him to schedule a day where the two of them could go back to the hotel room for some private time and talk about a few issues. His insecurities flared up, and he immediately asked her if he had done anything wrong. While she promised him that everything was fine and it was just a talk about their sex life moving forward, Guzma was jumpy and set time aside the very next day. 

They managed to get another hotel suite, this one was a little nicer. By they, he really meant Marie because she was already in the room when he got there. She was dressed in a knee-length silk robe, looking like she had just taken a shower and was admiring two boxes that were on the table. “Sup, doll?” He murmured, taking off his jacket and hanging it up. 

“Go wash up first.” Marie replied. “I left you a robe in the bathroom.” 

“Not even gonna give your boy a kiss?” He pouted, his heart racing. 

Marie sighed, kissing his lips quickly. “You smell.” 

He was offended. “Ya boy’s been workin’, fixin up his home!” 

“You still don’t have adequate plumbing, do you?” She sighed, moving away. “Go wash up. We’ll talk when you’re done.” 

“No, you got me all fucked up in the head.” He growled. “We’re talkin’ now.” 

She sighed, pointing to the chair. “Fine. Sit, then.” 

He begrudgingly sat in the chair, folding his arms over his chest. “For breakin’ up with ya boy, this is a really shitty way to do it.” 

“I’m not.” Marie blushed, flustered. “Guzma, I’m not breaking up with you!” 

“Then why the whole urge to not talk to me as soon as I walk in the door? Tellin’ me to go shower without giving me a kiss?” 

“If you haven’t looked at yourself, you should know you have grease all over your face.” 

Oh, was that it? “I, uh...I didn’t know.” 

“You’re so wrapped up in your own insecurities and head that you’re not paying attention to yourself when you need to take care of your own things.” She explained. “If you had gone into the bathroom, you would’ve not only seen your robe but also a few other things for you. Like a cup of Tapu Coco and the tub being big enough for you to soak in it.” 

He blushed, embarrassed. “I, um…” 

“Guzma, I’m going to be blunt. What do you know about the BDSM culture?” 

“I mean…” He fidgeted nervously in his chair. “I mean I had partners before that were into that shit. They were really into whips and chains and stuff.” 

“Were you a dom or a sub?” 

“What?” 

“Were you a dominant or a submissive?” 

He inhaled, “I think I was a sub?” 

She blinked, “I see. And when you told them to stop something, did they stop?” 

“No?” 

And there was the problem. “Guzma, you weren’t in real BDSM relationships then. You were just being **abused.** Doms are supposed to stop the minute you tell them no. Doms and subs have a strict set of rules, and a lot of it is built on trust and support. There are a lot of people who say they’re doms, but they’re really just abusive assholes looking for unknowing submissives to abuse.” She explained, pulling out one of the boxes. “I’d like for us to try an aspect of that culture. But I need your full and complete acknowledgement. There will be rules, and there will be consequences for breaking those rules. But there will also be rewards for successfully completing your tasks. Do you think this interests you so far?” 

He shrugged, “I mean, I’m into trying almost anything once.” 

“Let's test this out then.” She mused, towering over him with her arms on either side of his chair. Her lips were close to his ear, and he could smell her shampoo lingering on her hair with the scent of buttercream on her skin. “I want you to go to the bathroom and take a shower or a bath. The choice is yours. I want you to enjoy your Tapu Coco and I want you to come back out wearing nothing but the robe. Can you do that for me?” 

He squeezed his legs together, feeling his face flush red with...arousal? Embarrassment? “Y-yes, I can do that.” 

She let him up, and he scurried off to the bathroom. Everything was there, as she promised, and more. A set of men’s shampoo from whatever company she ordered from was on the table, along with body wash and a scrub. A warm cup of Tapu Coco was ready for him, complete with marshmallows and a note from Marie. He picked it up, reading the cursive on the inside. 

_Guzma - Enjoy yourself! Get cleaned up and I’ll see you in a bit. Ღ Marie_

He dropped the note, stripping down and finally looking at himself in the shower. Well, fuck. Yeah, if Marie came home looking like how he looked, he wouldn’t wanna kiss her either. He was covered in oil, grease, dirt...No wonder the receptionist looked at him like he was the plague. He fuckin’ looked like he just crawled out of a graveyard and dragged himself through shit. 

He turned on the faucet, testing the waters before turning the shower on and staggering in. He was so fucking sore from trying to fix the roof of the pokemon center. One of the grunts had been up there and was trying to work with him on it, but he had to save their scrappy ass from falling off the roof and took the tumble down himself. He was thankful his Golisopod was out otherwise he’d be in the hospital with a broken back. But did he ever start feeling the bruises, though. 

He scrubbed his hair and body, watching the clear water turn into a murky swamp water color and spiral down the drain. The body scrub was a delightful smell of bourbon vanilla, amber, and some kind of trees. It wasn’t a bad smell, but more high class than he was used to and it made him nervous to wear it because he felt that low about himself. Like it was too good for him to wear and he shouldn’t be lowering the standards. 

He finally scrubbed himself clean, exiting the shower and enjoying the mug of Tapu Coco while he dried off. It must’ve been Marie’s mix because he couldn’t place the flavor to any place he’s been to. He finished his mug, rinsing it in the bathroom sink, then wrapped the silk robe around himself. On his chest was a very pretty cursive “G” in white thread. Wow...he was getting the A-list treatment. 

He poked his head out of the bathroom, seeing Marie at the table in a full lingerie set pouring two glasses of what he guessed were wine. Black satin wrapping around her stomach and thighs with sheer silk flowing from below her breasts; a babydoll attire. She looked at him, smiling. “There, aren’t you feeling better now?” 

“Sorry, boo. Didn’t realize how gross I was until I saw myself.” He scoffed, walking over and accepted the glass she handed him. “So what’s this?” 

“A family specialty.” She tapped the bottle, in very elegant words “Desjardins Grenache” was labeled on the front. “Well, specifically, it's our brand of wine.” 

“You own a vineyard?” He quirked an eyebrow at her. 

“How do you think I had the money to do all this?” She laughed, “Move to Alola, open a bakery, employ you and a dozen teenagers...you thought I just had enough saved up?” 

“I mean….I’m not one to question your financial decisions and shit.” He murmured, sipping on his drink. A spicy, berry-flavored that tasted like a mix between strawberries and raspberries, with a white pepper note. He downed his glass, shaking his head. “Jesus, that was somethin’ else.” 

“My own blend.” Marie noted, picking up the bottle. “My grandfather built two empires, this is one of them. My twin brother and I inherited both when he was killed, and we decided to make a lot of changes.” 

“The other empire?” Guzma questioned. 

“...no longer there.” She remarked, putting her glass down. “But it can be easily reestablished at the drop of a dime. However, we’re not talking about my finances, are we?” She smiled at him, grabbing the boxes. “Sit on the bed, Guzma. We can go over the rules.” 

He obeyed, and she sat next to him. “Thank you for taking a shower, you look and smell much better. Did you like the products I bought for you?” 

“They’re really fancy. Wasn’t sure I should be using them.” He nervously smiled, seeing her disapproving look on her face. “You can’t be expectin’ me to feel good about myself like that overnight.” 

“No, but we will be working on it starting tonight.” She replied, setting one box on the bedside table. The other was a long box that she opened, revealing two more boxes inside. She pulled one out, setting the container on top of the other box on the table, and opened that one. Inside was a long, thick chain that was plated in gunmetal steel and the only way this device could be opened was a lock that kept the two ends together. Engraved on the front was Marie’s handwriting, a cursive “M + G” on the lock. “This is known as a day collar. It's a reminder to the both members of their promise and love for each other. Of their trust and respect. I’d like to put this on you with a few conditions.” 

He nodded, and she continued. “First, if you agree to continue this with me after tonight, you will wear the day collar every day. There are two other collars I purchased, they’re for me to wear for you. You will choose one after tonight if you wish. Otherwise, we will pack everything up and put them away. I will not force you into the choice, this is something you must do on your own. Second, should you decide you want to continue this path, every day we will be performing a self love exercise. You will tell me one thing, each day, you love about yourself. You cannot use the same thing every day, so you should start making a list.” 

“...can we try that out tonight too?” He asked, excited and nervous all at once. 

“Of course.” She promised. “The final rule is that you must be honest with me and with yourself at all times about everything. I can pick up when you’re lying and I will call you out on it. You will also need to pick a safe word, do you know what that is?” 

“No?” He chewed on his lower lip, feeling ashamed for letting the assholes before her use him. 

“If at any point you feel absolutely uncomfortable with what we are doing, you give me the safe word. Everything stops, no matter what we are doing, and you are my main priority. I’m doing this because it pleases me to please you. Do you understand Guzma?” 

“Yes….” 

“Then what is your safe word?” 

He eyeballed the collar, licking his lips at the thought of all she said. It sounded a lot different and much better than what he went through before. “Um...Luna.” 

“Luna. Very good.” She chuckled, wrapping the chain around his neck. The lock latched the two ends together, and he felt a small bit of his anxiety leave. She put the key on the side of the table, and he watched with wide eyes as she leaned forward. “When I’m doing something and I need to be careful, you need to say ‘Solar,’ okay?” 

“Yes.” 

“That’s going to be a ‘Yes, love’ from you from now on. Can you do that for me?” 

“Yes, love.” 

“There’s my good boy.” She mused, kissing his lips. “Stand up and take your robe off, I want to see you.” 

“A-all of me?” He blushed, and she nodded. He stood up slowly, taking off the black robe and letting it fall to the floor. He felt shy before her in his naked glory, his dick already erected and leaking a little bit at the tip. Her hands brushed against his hips, close to his member and he moaned. “D-do you need anything else?” 

“Your daily exercise. Guzma, I want you to tell me just one thing you love about yourself.” She crossed her legs, laying back on her elbows so she could take more of his sight in. The Big Bad Boss of Team Skull was blushing like a teenager about to have their first sexual encounter, despite having numerous partners before. 

“I...I…” He stuttered, trying to keep himself calm. He felt pressured, and like his erection was leaving him. 

“This time, I’ll help you.” She muttered, standing up. Her hands moved across his chest, and she whispered into his ear. “I love that you’re capable of being the father many teenagers don’t have.” 

“...I...I love that I’m capable of being a dad that many teens don’t have.” He spat out, feeling some relief of pressure taken off of him. 

“That’s a good start.” She giggled, kissing his cheek. “Lay on the bed, baby. I want to try something with you now.” His naked back hit the soft comforter, and he felt Marie climb on top. Her small hands rubbed his chest, moving up to his shoulders and down his arms in a quick massage. “You’re so well toned, my love. Look at your muscles. Atlas himself would be envious of these.” 

“Atlas?” He questioned. 

“An old Titan deity that was said to hold up the world.” Marie explained, chuckling. “I’m guessing they don’t teach that in Alola schools?” 

“No.” 

“If you would like to learn, I can teach you.” 

“Yes, love.” 

“Very good.” She mused, humming in delight. “And you did that without me reminding you to. That deserves a reward.” She moved down so her hips were straddling his cock, feeling the underside rest against her clothed slit. Slowly, she moved herself up and down his length, pressing weight against his aching member until it was fully erected. “Pleasing me by being a good boy will reward you. Do you like this reward?” 

“Y-yes, love!” He moaned, moving his hands up to grab her waist. “Yes, please, I love this!” 

She chuckled, grabbing his arms to support herself as she continued her reward for him. “You’re doing so well, darling.” He blushed at the words, no one had spoken so kindly to him in bed. He moved his hips up to get more friction, and she frowned. Removing herself from his grasp and sat back on his legs, her hands on his hips as she held him to the bed. “Don’t get greedy, Guzma.” 

“No, no, please! Please! I want you! Fuck!” He moaned, trying to beg his way back into her graces. “Please, I’m a naughty boy! I’m a stupid fuckin’ slut for your pussy! Please, just let me cum!” 

“No, see, that doesn’t please me.” She murmured, getting off him. He moved to grab at her again, but her hand was pressed firmly against his shoulder. “No, Guzma. You’re being punished.” 

“F-for what?!” He spat, too horny to care. 

“For saying such vulgar things about yourself.” She reminded him, pushing him back onto the bed. “So you’re going to lay here and wait until you’ve calmed down enough. Then you’re going to apologize for saying that about yourself, and we will work together on how you will redeem yourself. Do you understand?” 

“Y-yes, love.” He muttered, laying back. Her hand left his chest, and she went over to the table to give him space. He watched her, leaning back in the chair and studying him like he was a mental patient in a psych ward. His breathing calmed down slowly, lust no longer clouding his judgement. “I’m...I’m sorry, love.” 

“Sorry for what?” She edged him on. 

“S-sorry for calling myself a stupid slut.” He blushed, watching her leave her chair and make her way back over. He went to touch her, and she moved away. “Please, I’m sorry!” 

“You’re not sorry, Guzma. You’re not sorry because you’re apologizing to the wrong person. Try again.” She muttered, out of his reach but so close to the edge of his fingertips. “Apologize to the right person for what you said. I’ll not tolerate that kind of talk for quite a long while.” 

He gulped, was she really going to make him apologize to himself? “I’m...I’m sorry to m-myself f-for...c-calling myself a stupid slut.” He choked the words out, feeling silly for having to apologize to himself but also embarrassed because he broke her rule already. 

“Good job.” She murmured, sitting back on him but this time on his legs. He moaned, her hand palming his erection slowly to bring it back to a full mast. “That’s your punishment, Guzma. You’re so touch starved that you’re willing to degrade yourself for the smallests of physical affection. But you’re worth so much more than a handjob by a stranger, aren’t you?” 

“Y-yes, love.” He moaned, hands timidly moving to grab her shoulders. “P-please come here? Please? I want to kiss you.” 

“Not right now.” She replied, rubbing his stiff cock. “I’m not giving you anything you want for a while now. You’ll have to do with this...unless you can think of a reason I should go back to rewarding you?” 

He panted, racking his brain and shoving aside anything that would degrade him. He couldn’t use his usual back-ups, no more calling himself a slut or a fuck toy. No more calling himself a worthless cock or a sorry piece of ass. That got his previous partners riled up, but it wouldn’t work for Marie. “I...I…” He gulped, the first good thing coming to mind. “I-I’ve been such a good boy for you, love. F-for my first time, I did such a good job!” 

“Hm...that you did.” She smiled tenderly at him, moving her legs to straddle his hips and push her cloth covered slit against his cock again. Her lips graced his once again, hands playing with his chest. “Touch me, Guzma. You like touching me, don’t you?” 

“Oh, yes, ma’am!” He cried out, one hand grabbing her hair and the other cupping her satin-covered breast. This was the softest sex he’s ever had, but it was the most satisfying thus far. He didn’t even penetrate her, she wasn’t even focusing on her pleasure. It was all about him. His need and his want for her touch, to love himself, to feel loved and needed and...and…

Not abused. The reassurance that she would never hurt him on purpose. 

“You’re twitching.” She muttered in his ear between kisses. “Are you close?” 

“Yes, love!” He groaned, coughing out moans and grunts of pleasure. “Fuck, I’m so close!” 

“Cum for me, my good boy.” She murmured softly. “I want to see your face when you do.” 

“O-oh-okay!” He gasped, closing his eyes briefly to focus on his words. WIth previous encounters, he was always behind him, ramming them from behind, tossing his head back as he fantasied that perfect woman from before. But with her, he didn’t need to. He kept his eyes focused on her, hands gripping her shoulders as the white inferno in him exploded, and so did his cock. His sperm coated their stomachs, ruining the lingerie set for Marie she was wearing. 

“What a mess, Guzma.” She teased, swiping a bit of his cum on her fingers. “But it was worth it, ri-mmph!” 

He pushed himself up, one hand behind her head as he kissed her and the other wrapping around the small of her back. He was devouring her, just as she was doing to him. He ignored the sticky mess between them as he panted out between kisses, “I love you. Fuck, I love you!” 

“...I love you too, Guzma.” She confessed,reaching for the lock for his necklace. 

“Please don’t take it off!” He begged, tucking his chin in to try and protect the necklace. “I want it on! Please, love!” 

“...as you wish.” She muttered, pushing him to lay back. She removed the babydoll top, wiping off the mess between their stomachs, and then rested next to him. “I’m so proud of you. You did so well for me today, Guzma.” 

He stared at the ceiling, smiling. The demons weren’t totally gone, but a lot of them were quiet when he touched the lock on his chest. He steadied his breathing, feeling her lay in his arms and trace shapes on his chest as he started to doze off. Tonight, he was set free from his demons.


	10. Love the Way You Lie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“On the first page of our story, the future seemed so bright”_   
> _“Its so insane ‘cause when its goin’ good, its goin’ great.”_  
>  **TW: Rape/Non-Con**

He _absolutely_ hated going to the Aether Foundation. Everything was too white, too bright, and needlessly clean. But Lusamine was running the joint, so he couldn’t bitch too much. Besides, he had a different thing to worry about. 

He was finally telling her - perhaps too late - that he was moving on from their friends with benefits arrangement and would strictly be business with her. He rubbed his thumb over the lock on his chest, taking deep breaths. He was repeating his self love exercise for today, though Marie wasn’t nearby to listen to him. 

“I love that I can do the right thing, even if its hard. I love that I can do the right thing, even if its hard. _I love that I can do the right thing, even if its **hard.**_ ” He repeated, his mantra enabling him to feel powerful and reenforcing his decision. He wanted his love, he wanted his little pastry chef. He had meant to break her in the beginning, but she was currently breaking him. 

“Going insane?” 

He looked up to see those distant green eyes that distressed him. It was hard enough that her kids inherited those same eyes, and harder still that Gladion had run away and joined Team Skull recently. “No, just...practicing something.” He smiled weakly, standing up. He was physically taller than her, but he felt so small compared to her persona. 

“Come to my office.” Lusamine smiled, flipping some blonde hair behind her shoulder. “We can… _discuss_ our usual business there.” 

He followed wordlessly, taking deep breaths to offset his fast beating heart. Her office was up the elevator, but the minute they entered and the door shut behind them, her body was pressed up against his. “Miss me?” 

“No.” 

She stopped, pushing herself off. “No?” she repeated. 

“No.” He continued. “No, I didn’t miss you. We need to talk about...our arrangement.”

“Is something wrong?” She leaned against the elevator wall, crossing her arms and her legs. “I thought you were happy with our no-strings-attached.” 

“I was at first.” He confessed. “But I met someone.” 

She looked annoyed. “Met _someone_? Guzma, you don’t meet someone, you fall into their lap like the dog you are. Do you think they’re going to give you everything?” 

“Not everything.” He murmured. “I still need work from you to keep the kids safe. I can’t ask them to support me financially, but I need to cut our sexual aspect out of the relationship and just do strictly business.” 

She eyed him over, scoffing. “Ugh...fine. Dick wasn’t that good anyways.” 

He sighed in relief, the elevator stopping at the top floor and he followed Lusamine down the glass-domed bridge and into her office. She walked straight to her desk, picking up the phone. “I need two shots of whiskey, one over ice please.” 

“Drinking already?” he asked, nervous. 

“Celebrating you moving on.” She smiled, and his stomach dropped. She was pissed. She only smiled like that when she was angry. Maybe the booze was to help her relax? 

“I have one last job for you, Guzma.” Lusamine said, “And it’ll pay gorgeously. After that, you’ll do well finding jobs elsewhere.” 

“That pissed?” He asked, seeing an Aether member come in with a platter that held two drinks. 

“No, just...frustrated. You know my sex drive is high and not having you at my call will anger me to the point where I’ll do something drastic.” She explained, looking at the drinks. “Ugh...they forgot the ice. Sorry, new staff.” 

“It's fine.” Guzma smiled, taking the shot. He clicked his cup with Lusamines, downing the glass without a second thought. “So onto business. What exactly were you...think...ing…?” His body felt warm, his limbs giving way to him as Lusamine shoved him into the couch. “What...fuck..” 

“Oops, silly me.” Lusamine sneered. “I forgot there’s two ways for the meaning ‘over ice’ here. A drink chilled, or to add the drug that numbs the muscles.” She started to unzip his pants, and he feebly tried to push her off. “I’ve already called Faba up here, you’re gonna be our little toy this afternoon.” 

“No...please…” he begged, panic setting into his mind. He didn’t want this! _He wasn’t consenting to this!_

“Now, now.” Lusamine smirked, straddling him. His cock was pressed against her slit, awakening his limp dick to an unwanted erection. “You’ll be paid like the _whore_ you are and then you’ll be sent off to the island hospitals.” 

“Luna!” He gasped out, tears pricking his eyes. “No! Luna!” 

“Is that the bitch’s name? Luna?” She laughed, hand grabbing at his throat to suffocate him. “What a perfect name for that slut. I bet she’s your type too, isn’t she? Stupid cumdumpster trash, isn’t she?” 

Her hand gripped harder, cutting off his air supply. Within minutes, Guzma had blacked out, with his final thoughts of begging some God above that Marie would come and save him. 

But no God answered his prayers. 

Ღღღღღღ

It wasn’t like Guzma to be late. 

Marie drummed her fingers against the counter, her anxiety so thick that the teenagers would stay as far away from her as they could. The day collar she wore for him hung around her neck, the heart-shaped lock preventing the chain from sliding through the circle was resting against her breastbone, jumping to the rhythm of her fingers. She had Chelsea running the counter today, hiring her as a one-day temp until they could find Guzma. And the worst part? Plumeria openly admitted she didn’t know where he was. 

He wasn’t in Po Town. He wasn’t home. He wasn’t at the diner. He wasn’t at work. Where was he? 

“Mama Skull!” 

Marie was pulled out from her thoughts, thinking she was over kneading the dough, but instead looked at a concerned Chelsea with a worried Nanu. “Um...Chels? We can’t have-” 

“You need to come with me.” Nanu interrupted. “Its Guzma. He’s at the hospital.” 

No….

 _Gods no…._

“Is he alive? Is he okay?” Marie asked, not even taking off her flour smeared apron and followed Nanu out to his motorbike. “Answer me, Nanu!” 

“You need to come see him.” was all she got in response. 

She shook her head. “Brandon and Chelsea, you’re in charge while I’m gone! Plumeria, get Abigail from daycare tonight! I’ll keep everyone updated!” She hopped onto the back of the motorbike with Nanu, who blasted his sirens and drove as fast as he could to the Hau’oli Hospital. She closed her eyes, praying that he was at least alive. No matter what happened, let him be alive and well. 

The Gods granted her prayers in a most disgusting of fashions. 

At the hospital. Nanu bypassed the nurses by flashing his badge. He led Marie down the halls into the intensive care unit, and her heart was skipping beats. Did he get beaten up again? No, it was much worse than that. She was led into a room, hearing the beeping of a heart monitor. 

In the bed laid Guzma, with oxygen tubes going up his nose and an IV in his arm. More than one the longer she looked. “They’re doing a blood transfusion and they’re keeping him medicated.” Nanu commented, watching as Marie shakingly made her way to his bed. His body was laid with bruises, his neck covered in spots. One of his eyes was turning black, and the traces of blood could be seen at the corner of his lips. 

“...what happened?” she asked, not taking her eyes of Guzma. 

“....do you want the medical reports or the full version?” 

“I want the goddamn truth, Nanu!” She hissed, turning to him. There was a fire in her eyes meant to kill anyone who withheld information from her, and he knew that look was dangerous. “Now!” 

“Guzma was dropped off at the early hours of the morning by a black car. There was no license plate and no one got a good look at the driver’s face. He has some broken ribs, some fracture in his collarbone, and…” He paused, swallowing. “An unknown male’s and an unknown female’s fluids on his pelvic region and inside his rectum.” 

“....he was raped?” She gasped. 

“...it doesn’t end there.” He commented. “There was a substantial amount of money deposited into his account this morning. There were notifications on his phone about it when I looked. They were from the bank account of the Aether Foundation’s President, Lusamine. Her son Gladion recently joined Team Skull and I questioned him about the relationship between Lusamine and Guzma. Before you joined the photo, Guzma and Lusamine had a strict friends with benefits relationship along with business.” 

….Lusamine? Aether Foundation? The cogs in her head were spinning, slowly grinding into place the missing pieces of the puzzle that she was sure Nanu came to the conclusion as well. “So, you have some questions for them, then? Interrogation? Suspects.” 

“No.” 

No? No?! “NO?! She screamed. “No?! Put them through a goddamn DNA swab and match them to the fuckin’ fluids.” 

“We can't,” Nanu said. “We can’t touch Aether. They have an extensive lawyer list, a buy-out system for nearly every judge in the region. And since it was on Alola, it can’t be taken to any other court. I’m sorry, Aether is untouchable.” 

She looked at him in disbelief, then straightened her back and snarled, “Get the fuck out of the room then, you useless pig.” 

She turned her back to him, pulling out her phone and texting Plumeria first. _’Change of plan, have Chels and Brandon watch Abi. Get to the Hau’oli hospital asap!’_ She took a seat next to Guzma, watching his chest rise and fall with each agonizing breath. Her hand touched his, gripping the fingers gently as tears fell from her eyes. 

Plumeria was brought into the room about an hour later by a nurse, and she nearly screamed. “What the hell?!” 

“Aether Foundation.” Marie whispered. “According to Nanu, there was a large amount of money deposited into Guzma’s account the morning. You don’t want to know what they did to him.” She inhaled slowly and continued. “I need you to tell me the extent of his relationship with Lusamine.” 

“....they were fuck buddies. He took jobs for her, capturing rare and unusual pokemon. In return, she paid him.” Plumeria said, standing next to Marie to look at Guzma’s body. “He...He broke things off. He said he was gonna break things off with Lusamine before you two got serious. I don’t think she took it too lightly. I think strings _were_ attached.” 

“...I think the same.” Marie agreed. “Nanu said they’re untouchable.” 

“Here in Alola? Yeah.” Plumeria sighed, rubbing her eyes. “Fuck, boss.” 

“Go home.” 

“What?” 

“Go home.” 

“Marie, you can’t just-” Plumeria started to argue, but Marie shot her a warning look. 

“I need to make a _call_ Plumeria. I promise I’ll make this better. Go home, and in the morning we will have some guests coming to stay for a while.” Marie ordered, watching as Plumeria sank into the background and begrudgingly obeyed Marie. 

Once the woman was out of the room, Marie closed the door and pulled out her phone. She scrolled through her contacts until she hit the “J” section and dialed “Jarvis.” 

One or two rings, before an elderly voice picked up on the other line. “Good evening, my lady. This call is most unexpected.” 

“Good evening, Mister Jarvis.” Marie said. “I know the business has been out for a while, but I need to place an order.” 

Silence from the other line. “I..I see...And what exactly are we ordering, Ma’am?” 

“I need a pizza. Deep dish. The works.” 

“Are you sure you dialed the right number, ma’am?” 

“I’m in the Hau’oli hospital. Let the nurses at the front desk know you’re here for me.” 

“I see...you realize that would cause us to come to Alola?” 

“That’s what I want.” Marie commented, biting her lower lip. “I have...some guests who need to be introduced to the family and I want to make an impression.” 

“Very good, ma’am.” Jarvis yawned. “I’ll see to it young master Mephiste is on the next flight out with me. Do we require the assistance of anyone else?” 

“....no, that’ll do.” Marie muttered softly. “I’ll call if I need anything else.” 

“Then by all means, we’ll be on the next flight out to Alola.” 

She hung up the phone, eyes unwavering from Guzma’s face. Like hell if she was going to stand and watch his world burn. She would burn with him if she had to, but it was unlikely it would come to talk. Her hand touched his cheek, thumb moving gently over his skin and careful to not add pain to his swelling bruise. He was a liar, a thief, and a bad boy, but for good reasons. He lied to keep the kids safe, he lied to keep her safe. He lied because he didn’t want to burden anyone else with his problems. 

Oh, how she loved the way he lied.


	11. Power is Power

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _”Heavy is the crown, **but never for a queen!”**_

It pained her to see him like this. Attached to multiple machines, having doctors poke at his body, changing his fluids. Thankfully the blood transfusion was successful, but Guzma had a concussion and was going to remain unconscious for an unknown amount of time. Marie responded to their snide remarks about the “medical bill being too high” should he remain on life support by slamming down her credit card and telling them to charge it on a daily basis and she wanted a detailed report of the expenses. Power was flowing through her veins, something she hadn’t felt since dismantling the Bluebird Empire her grandfather built. 

Oh that Empire...it was an underground smuggling and gang ring that ran by a strict set of rules. One would akin them to more classy mobsters, since they never went after kids or women. But they weren’t above blackmail, threats, or even arson with the right person. Lusamine had just crossed the new leader of the organization, and was about to deal with the aftermath of her brash decisions. Marie was above using her connections to handle most matters. But this particular matter? This was personal. This was revenge Marie was going to make sure was served ice cold by tearing down Lusamine and removing her pride with a scalpel. 

Come the morning, Marie was still next to Guzma in her chair, holding his hand as her head laid on the bed. There was a knock on the door, and she lifted it slightly to see a pair of familiar red eyes staring back at her. “You look like hell.” The man at the door said, entering quietly. 

“I feel like hell.” She replied, standing up. “It's good to see you again, my brother.” 

She hugged the man with the same black and white hair as her, his hands squishing along her spine to ease any tension. “Its good to see you too, sister mine.” He looked down at Guzma, shaking his head. “So...this is him?” 

“Sorry its not an ideal first meeting.” Marie commented, taking her seat again. Mephiste poked his head out the door, motioning for someone to come join. Eventually an elderly man joined the room wearing a suit and gloves. “Morning, Jarvis.” 

“Morning, Ma’am.” Jarvis smiled, clearing his throat. His greying hair was neatly combed back and his beard perfectly trimmed. “Young Master Mephiste has been informed of the situation.” 

“...we should talk outside.” Marie sighed, looking at the medical staff that were eyeballing them with caution. She got out of her chair again, kissing Guzma on the forehead. “I’ll be right back, baby. I promise, I’m gonna fix all of this.” 

The two men followed her to the back of the hospital, making sure there was no one nearby. Jarvis pulled out a pack of cigarettes for Marie, unopened, and lit one up. “Ma’am?” 

“Thank you, Jarvis.” She smiled, taking the cig and inhaling quickly. “We need a hit.” 

“How big of one?” Mephiste asked, pulling his long hair back into a ponytail to it wouldn’t distract him from taking notes. 

“Aether Foundation.” 

“....you seriously?” Mephiste smiled wickedly. “Oh, please. Tell me you’re not joking, sister mine! I’ve been itching to get into their system for years!” 

“Hold up, brother.” Marie commented, taking another drag. “You can have your fun, but I need **my** business taken care of first. Understand?” She waited until he nodded to continue. “Guzma was raped. There was a drug in his system and he has fluids on him and in him from a male and a female. I wanna know who did it. I have a hunch, but I need solid answers. I want people on the inside, and I need people on the outside watching. I need their buy-out system, and I need it flushed or for us to out-buy them.” 

Mephiste looked at his sister. “All this because they took advantage of your guy? We could just get a hitman to take care of the problem.” 

“....she made this personal. He broke things off with her for us. I…” She paused, grabbing the heart lock between her chest. 

Mephiste gasped, “You’re...oh my god, Marie, why didn’t you tell me?!” 

“What? That I’m finally dating someone?!” she hissed. 

“Marie, you’re doing more than that, aren’t you?” Mephiste inquired. “You two have day collars! That’s a lot more serious than just a fling!” 

“Fine! Guzma and I are officially dating! An item! A couple! We’ve had some forms of sex!” She yelled, taking a final drag of her cigarette and tossing the bud to the ground, stepping on it. 

“....did not need that final bit, but thanks for that.” Mephiste shook his head, cracking his fingers and pulling out a notepad. “Right, so we need people inside and outside, buy-out the lawyers...Oh! Can we destroy her reputation?” 

“She has two children who are on the run who haven’t been reported as lost or missing.” Marie replied. “Hit her with that. I’m sure for the tabloids, they’ll eat that up.” She lit another cigarette, shaking. “I want a construction team. I’ve heard how bad where he lives is, and he illegally fosters a couple dozen teenagers. I need them in _my_ care shortly after renovations. Pull favors if you have to, but I need every single one of them legally signed over to me.” 

“This is gonna be a tall order, sis.” Mephiste jolted down a few more ideas. “What’re we thinkin’ for revenge? Can’t just be on this Lusamine, you mentioned a guy.” 

“....I want the video footage.” Marie hissed. “Camera’s are all around that place, right? I need to know exactly who the man was, and then I want him brought to me. I need that footage to prove that we **know** it was him. Understand?” 

“....we will get it done.” Mephiste promised, closing his notebook. “Could we head up? Its too hot.” 

“Sure.” She replied, brushing the lit end of her cigarette on the ground. “Jarvis, you have my address, right?” 

“Absolutely Ma’am!” He smiled, “Is miss Abigail in appropriate care?” 

“Abigail is in the best of hands.” Marie smiled, heading inside with her company. “But I need you to go home and get a change of clothes for me. I’ve been wearing the same thing for over twenty-four hours and its gross.” 

“At once, ma’am. Shall I bring Miss Abigail along?” 

“No. She shouldn’t see Guzma like this. Call me when you get there and let me talk to her.” She headed back to the room with Mephiste and Jarvis left the hospital. Through her window, Marie could see the black car Jarvis picked out and laughed at his choice of a bug. 

“Yeah, they don’t have much for cars here.” Mephiste sighed, setting down his backpack. He pulled out his laptop, flipping it open. With his back to the window, he plugged in the electrical cord and went to work. “First thing’s first, right? Bills need to be taken care of.” 

“Bills?” Marie inquired. 

“I mean...I did some scrounging on the way over. Po Town’s got a massive debt on its hands. You may have taken care of the electric bill, but there’s still the houses to legally buy, the construction crew…” 

“We’re taking care of that first?” 

“I mean…” Mephiste sighed, sitting cross-legged in the small chair. “Sis, this is a whole new territory. We’re not _known_ here, so we can’t be flaunting our cards. Gimme a few hours to get some dirt on some high-tier assholes and we’ll sit tight until a few crates sells.” 

“I assume you’ve already called the House?” Marie questioned, the House being the term for their ring of wine sellers and collectors who were begging for more of their familys’ lineage drink. 

“If I didn’t, do you think I’d be sitting here looking at this…” He paused, looking at the screen, “Leilani chick and her massive gambling debt?” 

“And Leilani is important because…?” 

“....Leilani has a degree in Law?” Mephiste snickered, “Specifically she’s known for cases dealing with children welfare, something we will need if we really have a fight with the parents over their kids?” 

“....sorry.” She muttered, taking her seat next to Guzma. “I’m just jumpy...I keep thinkin’ we’re gonna lose him like we-” 

“You know damn well we didn’t lose Sayla and Jessie without a fight.” Mephiste interrupted. “We didn’t let them die, we made sure they were handled by professionals. It's not our fault they died under the knife. It's no one’s fault but that driver, got it?” 

“....Yeah, but I still carry the guilt.” Marie explained, squeezing Guzma’s hand. 

“You wanted to prove to yourself that you had what it took to take on the Champion of Kalos in an official match. And you did, kid; you got so far to actually do that. You did so much more than anyone expected of you and we were all proud when you got your first badge.” Mephiste continued, “You were the legal heir to that fuck’s inheritence, and look what you did with it so far. You made a difference in this man’s life, Marie. I read his record.” 

“Record?” She questioned. 

“Petty theft, disorderly conduct, minor assault...looked to be the parents of one of those kids he took in.” He commented. “And given his background, it doesn’t surprise me.” 

“...care to explain?” 

“Marie, how much about this guy do you know?” Mephiste asked. “I’m not challenging your right to date him, but you sound surprised by his crimes and I’m gonna guess he didn’t tell you much about his childhood?” 

“Only that his dad used to beat him.” Marie remarked. 

“....sis, it wasn’t just a little bit of beating. The man was arrested for domestic assault on his wife a few years ago. She dropped the charges on him despite needing reconstructive surgery. She’s dropped a shit ton of charges on him. _That’s_ the past he had.” He kept tapping away at his computer. “Which doesn’t sound too different from ours.” 

“You were booted from the family just for being gay.” Marie sighed, laying her head on the bed next to Guzma’s hip. 

“Yeah, and Sayla’s dad was kind enough to take me in. This guy didn’t have it so easy until you came along.” Mephiste admitted, looking up from his screen. “When did you last eat or sleep? Don’t tell me you smoked on an empty stomach. Last time, you got sick.” 

“I’m fine.” She lied, but her brother huffed and stopped the typing. “Please, keep working. Jarvis is bringing me more clothes.” 

“Go home.” Mephiste ordered. “I’ll come with you. The doctors and nurses are here to watch him, okay? Nothing is going to happen to him. You’ve got Abigail at home and a handful of teens who need to know what’s going on.” 

“....you got eyes on him?” Marie questioned, “Please.” 

“I already got someone giving him the best care. Switched his doctor over who took a generous donation.” He smiled, gesturing to an older male doctor out in the hall who was discussing with the younger doctor Guzma previously had. “They’ll get a laptop in the room and keep the camera on him for us, okay? Let’s go home.” 

She sighed, her stress level was high enough but she had to admit her brother was right. He started packing up the laptop, heading outside of the room to talk to the doctor. She, however, gave Guzma a kiss on the forehead and noticed for the first time that his chain and lock were on the table beside him, dented and scratched up. She glared at it, the thought of that _bitch_ using it to hurt him caused her to grow angrier and her heart turned colder. 

But she needed solid proof first to inflict deserving damage to them. 

Jarvis had been waiting for them, with a bag in the front of Marie’s new clothes but since she was going home, he insisted he put it away. She saw her reflection in the window of the door and had to admit - she looked like shit. She didn’t sleep, didn’t eat much, and had bawled her eyes out all night thinking about what that horrible organization did to him. 

The trip home was silent, except for Jarvis commenting on the bright and beautiful Alola colors. Marie just closed her eyes and rested against the cold window, her shoulders finally releasing the tension. She needed a hot shower and Gengar when she got home, that she was certain. But she wasn’t sure she would get it since her house would be flooded with people. 

And she was right. 

Besides a couple teenagers hanging around her house, Plumeria had been standing outside talking to Nanu and a shirtless tan man wearing a labcoat and green shades. She blinked, seeing Abigail inside the house with Chelsea and Brandon. “Did you get traced?” 

“Nope.” Mephiste said, looking at Nanu who was approaching the car. “You know the pig?” 

“Yeah.” She murmured. “Shut your jaw and leave this to me.” 

She exited the car, looking at Nanu. “Problem, Nanu?” 

“Just a round check on everyone.” Nanu commented. 

“Right, and your companion here is?” 

“Ah! So sorry! I’m Professor Kukui!” The man smiled, extending a hand. “I’m the Pokemon Professor here in Alola! The version Alola has of Professor Sycamore. I grew up with Guzma, though we had a fallout recently. I heard about what happened and came to check up on everyone” 

“Pleasure.” Marie quickly and weakly shook his hand. “Gentlemen, I’ve had a rough night. If you’ll excuse me-” 

“Actually, I need a statement from you.” Nanu confessed. “About Guzma.” 

“....why?” She inquired, raising an eyebrow. 

“Just wanted to make the report known.” Nanu pulled out a pen. “First off, did you and Guzma have any sort of dispute before he left?” 

“...no?” she replied, and Mephiste took her side. “Why are you asking that?” 

“Well, his parents are pressing charges on his behalf.” Nanu stated. “His mom believes you paid whomever to mess up her son and-” 

“His **mother**?” Marie yelled. “I was just at the hospital since he’s been admitted! I’m paying for his medical bills! Does this _twat_ know who the fuck I am?!” 

“You and I know what happened. A DNA test will clear you, she’ll have to pay for the legal fees. Blah, blah, blah.” He pulled out a swap kit, holding it before Marie. “Look, just give me a sample and I’ll go, okay? You’re tired and you need to be inside with your family. ” 

She grabbed the tube instead, spitting into the vial and handed it back to him. “Fuck you and fuck that woman! If she goes anywhere near him in the ICU, I will press charges on her for slandering and whatever the fuck else I can _assume_ she’s done to him!” She yelled, storming off. 

“Ah, Marie?” Kukui went after her. “I do, um, need to talk to you. Can I leave my card?” 

“....give it to my brother.” She commented, finally entering the house. Jarvis and Mephiste stayed outside, dealing with Nanu and Kukui’s problems. She saw Abigail at her hip and smiled, bending down to hug her daughter. “Hey, baby. Did you have fun?” 

“Is Mister Guzma okay?” Abigail asked softly, looking at her mom with tears. “I don’t want Mister Guzma to die!” 

“Mom’s helping him, okay?” Marie whispered, standing up. “I’m..I’m paying for the medical bills. And I’m working on buying Po Town. I don’t want any of you kids to be associated with the Aether Foundation at all, do you understand?” 

“Are you sure?” Plumeria asked, a little floored that Marie would go through such lengths. “How’s the boss?” 

“Still not up.” She replied, taking off her shoes. “I need a shower and some fresh clothes. I’m going back tonight.” 

“You’re staying here, Ma!” Brandon huffed, folding his arms over his chest. “Your damn butler out there already told us about you not sleepin’. What the actual fuck?” 

“Brandon, please, not now.” Marie sighed, rubbing her forehead. “Please, I can’t handle getting yelled at.” 

“Not yellin’, tellin’.” He retorted. “Ma, listen! We’re all worried about the boss, but-” 

“I couldn’t protect him!” She yelled. “He didn’t tell me the truth! He ran off to that woman on his own and got hurt! He goddamn lied to me and to everyone! And now he’s all fucked up in a hospital bed, and I can’t handle the fuckin’ thought of anyone else being sent in on a stretcher because of those idiots!” She held her head, the headache pounding and the tears flowing down. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to yell, I-” 

“Mom.” Chelsea hugged her from behind, squeezing tight. “Boss is gonna be okay. He’s been through worse. He’ll feel bad if you got sent in there with him because you’re worried about everyone, though. Can you take a shower for us, Mom? Please?” She begged, and Abigail joined in by hugging her mom’s leg. “I’ll get dinner for you, okay? Just go relax.” 

Marie patted her daughter on the head and her other hand touched Chelsea’s arm. The teenager let her go, waiting for their surrogate mother figure to get into the bathroom before working on reheating dinner with Plumeria and Abigail. Brandon, who wasn’t good at this emotional stuff that dealt with people in the hospital, felt it was best that he went outside with Mephiste and Jarvis who were looking annoyed with Kukui and Nanu. 

Marie wrapped her hand around the chain on her neck as the water poured down over her. This was a weight she had to carry alone, just for a little longer. The burden of taking care of things while her lover was out, and making sure justice was swift and merciless to those who wronged him. 

Heavy was her crown she wore, but she bore the weight proudly upon her head.


	12. Darkside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _”We’re not in love, we share no stories. Just something in your eyes.”_

Plumeria was skeptical of the construction crew that just showed up in Po Town one day. It hadn’t been until moments later that Marie and her family showed up in that black beetle car, strutting orders to get the town looking presentable from the front to the back where the mansion was. The tired looking woman just smiled sweetly at her, handing over some drawings of how the mansion was going to look and asked for her opinion. 

That was a couple of days ago, though. The team of lawn care officials, construction crew, and woodworkers were steadily crafting their goods into the homes. She watched from the window of her room as Marie had been discussing something with one of the bosses, gesturing to a run-down house that was too far gone to be replaced. Jarvis was outside her room, clearing his throat, “Miss Plumeria? The workers have some questions about the broken chandelier in the main hall. Shall we replace it or try to restore it?” 

“Why is she doing this?” Plumeria asked, ignoring the old man. “Why is she going to such great lengths to do things for us? We were fine before.” 

“....may I come in?” Jarvis asked, never one to fully enter a room without permission. He waited for Plumeria to nod before closing the door behind him and joining her at the window. “Miss Plumeria, you are regarded highly amongst your peers. The ‘Big Sis’ of the group, so to speak, correct? I shall tell you of why the mistress is doing this, but you cannot repeat these words to anyone. She will confess in her due time.” 

“....are we talkin’ murder or something?” She raised an eyebrow, already nervous. 

Jarvis laughed, “Good heavens, no! No, nothing of that sort.” He watched Marie fondly as she grabbed a sledgehammer, dragging it across the yard and broke in a door which had a bolt lock on it. “No, she is atoning for sins that are not hers to atone for.” 

“Care to go into detail?” Plumeria inquired, folding her arms over her chest. 

“Ah, yes, well. Miss Marie’s grandfather was a bit of a….well, a very dark individual.” He sighed. “The things he’s done to those children, to his servants. I served him most of my life and still his cruelty amazes me. The money she inherited, she associates it with the problems he’s caused. She feels like because the inheritance is on her, so is the sin.” 

“What kind of things did he do?” Plumeria felt like she was going down a rabbit hole she couldn’t turn back from, but she had to know. 

“The twins carry scars upon their back from that monster. He would whip them with his rattan cane if they acted out of line.” He explained. “One time, Marie had directly disobeyed him by refusing to go to art class. He smacked the cane across her wrists so hard they broke.” 

Plumeria felt sick to her stomach. “That was just his family. What he did to people he couldn’t use or manipulate was far, _far_ worse. He had taken great pleasures in dismemberment torture, something he forced the twins to watch and eventually participate. When they refused, punishments were inflicted.” He clenched his fists. “When it came out what he was doing to Marie, soon after Sayla had killed him, I felt responsible. I was their primary caretaker, no matter what he claimed on the paperwork. I had arranged for Mephiste to be taken care of after being evicted just because he preferred the company of men and men alone.” 

“....I’m sorry.” Plumeria whispered. “I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.” 

“Bad memories or not, they are things that happened.” He attempted to smile. “You and I share no stories as of yet, young miss. But, rest assured, Marie and Mephiste are dedicated to righting wrongs and that includes how the people of Alola have treated you.” 

“We literally ran the original people of this town out, though.” Plumeria retorted. 

“....yes, and one of them was your father, wasn’t it?” He smiled at her devilishly. “Your father left Alola soon after he was released from the hospital for second-degree burns. Quite an extensive damage was done to him, as if someone was trying to enforce judgement upon him with their own hands.” 

She stared at him with wide eyes as he continued. “Yes, I think burning the man’s own hands for touching you so inappropriately was justice well served. He’ll never touch another woman again, much less his own genitals.” 

“How do you know that?” Plumeria asked, feeling tears swell in her eyes. “How do you know what he did to me?” 

“Mephiste has an art of finding information and extorting it for purposes like this.” He gestured to Po Town. “Not many of the original owners were willing to give into Marie’s demands for buying them out, and in fact they were planning on a legal battle against Team Skull. It wasn’t until Mephiste brought up many of the dirt on the former residences here that they caved and well...Now the Desjardin family has an entire town to pay taxes on.” 

Desjardin? “Wait...Marie is...she’s part of…” She looked down at Marie, the weight of realization hitting her like a ton of bricks. “Oh my god.” 

The Desjardin family was one of Kalos’s “elite” families, with the passing of the head of the family Lucas giving rights of the inheritance to his grandchild and only the only surviving members. Plumeria remembered reading about them when she was younger, about the mysteriousness of the family with each passing generation upholding a great wine empire and every member doing something so grand that it added to their family name. She wished, growing up, she had a life like that. But not? Not so much. She regretted every thought of how they lived a happy and rich life; free from all the cares in the world. 

“Her parents didn’t die in the fire that burned their house down.” He explained. “They were burned alive, and the twins carry the memory of that night as they watched their parents suffocate and burn. So here they are, thousands of miles away from Kalos, undoing the damage that Alola citizens have done to its more helpless members. All to atone for the sins attached to their family name.” 

“Why did their grandfather kill their parents?” She asked, regretting her choice in asking but knowing the answer would help fit the pieces of the puzzle. 

“Because their father wasn’t another “elite” member of Kalos society. He was simply a common boy with large dreams to be a pokemon professor.” He chuckled, “Their mother ran away with him at night, and I helped her escape. Oh, I paid for that choice once Lucas found out. He broke my ankles with a hammer and dismembered some of my toes.” 

She looked like she was going to get sick, and so Jarvis added, “But that’s enough talk for now. Come, Plumeria, we need your input in the main hall.” With that, he opened her door and smiled, waiting for her to leave first before closing the door to her room. “You still haven’t yet said if you’d like for your room to be redone, Miss.” 

“My room is fine, actually,” Plumeria replied, feeling bad if she took anything away from the other grunts who needed something more than her. 

“I can contest that, but I will wait for you to admit it.” Jarvis chuckled, poking his head over the railings to see Marie and her Machamp grabbing the broken beams and hauling them outside. Mephiste was hard at putting up new wallpaper for the main hall and conversing with a gentleman over the type of floor they should have. “Those two carry weight they should not have and walk among the darkside of starlight untouched.” 

“They still don’t have to help.” Plumeria sighed, but realizing that this point Marie was just as stubborn as Guzma. She leaned against the railing, watching the twins hard at work and thought about how Guzma was alone in the hospital now, but yet he wasn’t truly alone. Marie kept checking her phone every few minutes to see the live-stream camera that was set up, making sure he was still fine before moving onto her project. It had been a few days since he was admitted, but already so much was changing and for the better. She went down the halls and steps, finally sitting down at the bottom and watching the duo. 

“You just gonna sit or you gonna help?” Marie teased, tossing Plumeria a paint-covered rag. “Corey’s done more than you.” 

“Corey’s super excited to see the pokemon center fully up and running.” She remarked, standing up and looked over the rag. “What am I supposed to do with this?” 

“Catch the glue.” Marie laughed, pointing to her Audino who was attempting to help paint but was distributing uneven coats on the wall. “She’s trying at least, but I keep telling her she would be of more use at the pokecenter. You kids have a lot of pokemon that need their shots and to be taken care of.” 

“Yeah, well…” Plumeria sighed, following Audino. “You could always command her. You are her trainer.” 

“....I know what it's like to be forced to do something just because I’m good at it.” Marie replied, grabbing some wood scrap. “I wasn’t good at baking at first, but I kept at it and look where I’m at now.” 

“Yeah, but, Audino’s are caring by nature. All the Nurse Joy’s have one.” Plumeria rubbed Audino’s head, smiling. 

“So if I tell you, another female, that you’d be more useful as a secretary than a CEO because its more ‘in your genetic nature,’ how would you feel?” Marie asked, setting down the scrap in her hands and walked over to Audino, petting it. “Or a nurse than a doctor? A waitress than a chef? Your genetic coding does not define you. Audino may be more helpful in a nursing environment, but she wants to help with the muscle work.” 

“....you know, the boss would’ve said the same thing.” Plumeria chuckled, catching the dripping glue on the wall. 

“Speaking of which.” Marie smiled, pulling out her phone. A few taps later, and her face paled. “What...the hell….” 

“What’s wrong?” Plumeria stood up, looking over her shoulder and seeing the camera screen was black with an ‘unable to connect’ line box 

“Mephiste!” Marie yelled, storming over to her brother. She flashed him the phone, and he looked at her confused. “What’s the meaning of this?” 

“You got an incoming call?” He retorted, and she pulled back the screen. Sure enough, she did. 

“Hello?” She answered on speaker, Plumeria and Mephiste crowding around her with Jarvis nearby to listen in on the conversation. 

“Hello, Miss Desjardins? There’s uh...well, Guzma’s parents are here. They’ve already destroyed the camera and we need you down here.” The doctor on the other line stumbled through his words and Marie could hear an older couple in the background screaming at him. 

“We’re on our way.” Marie promised, hanging up. She rubbed her paint covered face, sighing. “Jarvis? Car, please.” 

“Right away, ma’am.” Jarvis jingled the keys in his hand, heading out of the doors to pull up the vehicle. 

“I’m coming with.” Plumeria insisted, and just watched as Marie nodded. “You’re gonna need help against Guzma’s dad. He’s an asshole of a certain degree that's gonna try and hurt you.” 

“I’m ready for the fight if it comes.” Marie smiled, heading out the door. No change of clothes, no washing up. Just her getting into the car stained with paint, wood chips, and smelling of sweat. Mephiste clamoured in after her, helping Plumeria into the back with him while Marie sat in the front. 

The ride was quiet, even on the ferry trip over. The doctor had called a few more times with concerns about how long they could keep Guzma’s parents under control, but Marie quieted his fears with the promise of being there soon. Plumeria could feel like she could cut the tension in the air with a knife, but kept her thoughts and comments to herself. 

Thankfully, it wasn’t long after they got off the ferry that they were in Hau’oli City and soon enough the hospital. Jarvis dropped the group off at the front door, and Marie was quick to dismiss the elevator in favor of running up the steps. The closer they got to the second floor, the louder they could hear someone screaming at the staff. Marie’s blood was boiling, Plumeria could tell by the look of murder in her eyes. 

“....and why haven’t you taken him off life support yet! He’s a worthless human being!” an old fat man was yelling at the nurses. “I’m not paying for that goddamn scum to live!”

“No, but I am.” Marie interrupted, standing in between the man and the staff. “Can I help you, sir?” 

“Who the fuck are you?!” he yelled at Marie. 

“I’m assuming you’re Guzma’s father.” She straightened her back, sticking her hand out. “I’m Marie, his girlfriend. I’m liable for your son’s medical expenses.” 

“That’s a confession!” the mother screamed, pointing at her. “She confessed to putting him in here!” 

“Now, calm down!” the doctor urged, watching as the nurses were calling security. “I can assure you she is not the one who put him in here!” 

“How do you know? Did you run a DNA test on her? The police said she didn’t match, but I don’t trust him! I want this little bitch escorted out!” the woman screamed, almost sobbing. “My boy is dying because of this wretched whore!” 

“I’m sorry, did you call my sister a whore?” Mephiste stood next to his sister. 

“Aha! A male! The report said it was male and female fluids! They obviously attached my poor boy!” The woman wailed louder. “Why aren’t you idiots doing anything?” 

“You need to leave.” Plumeria hissed, standing behind Marie. “You’re not wanted anywhere near Guzma! He made that fuckin’ clear the last time you came to Po Town.” 

“He’s still my boy and I’ll do as my fuckin’ please!” the male yelled, clenching his fist. He grabbed at Marie, gripping the collar of her shirt and pulling her to him. His fist was raised, and Marie stared at him blankly. “Wretched whore, I’ll show you!” 

_Wham!_

Marie stumbled back, looking up in awe at her savior. In his hospital gown, Guzma glared down at his dad. “Hey, fucker.” He hissed. “I just woke the fuck up and I have to see your ugly face? Get the hell out.” 

“Guzma…” Plumeria whispered, in awe of her boss. 

“Son.” His mother started. “We were worried about you.” 

“Is that why you gangin’ up on my girl?” He growled, snarling at the woman he called his mother. “Don’t fuckin’ call her a whore, ma. You two get out.” 

“Now you listen here, you stupid-gah!” The father was picked up by Jarvis by the collar himself, the silent butler smiling proudly. “Excuse the fuck outta you!” 

“Jarvis…” Marie muttered. “Can you please take the trash out?” 

“With absolute _pleasure_ , ma’am.” Jarvis set the man on his feet, dragging him out of the halls and down to the elevator where the security guards were waiting. Guzma’s mother shot Marie a glare of disgusted likeness and left with her husband. 

Marie finally took a moment to catch her breath, taking in the sight of Guzma walking and talking. He looked tired still, but perhaps that was the drugs. “What, don’t I get a hug?” He teased, and she jumped into his arms. “Hey, hey, hey! Easy!” 

“Shut up.” She muttered into his chest, clinging tightly. “Shut up, jackass. You’ve been in your hospital bed unconscious and I’ve missed you.” 

He scoffed, wrapping his arms around her, “Yeah, yeah. I’ve missed you, too.” He groaned, rubbing her back. “But ya boy’s sore.” 

“Let's get you back into the hospital bed, sir.” The doctor stated. “You shouldn’t be up and walking yet.” 

“Only if she comes with.” He stated, holding Marie a little tighter. 

“Of course.” the doctor agreed. “She needs to wait and give a statement to the police anyways.” 

She walked Guzma back to his room, helping him back onto the bed after removing the IV’s that were strewn about and plastic tubing on the floor. He must’ve woken up, seen the fight, and left in a hurry. He relaxed back on the bed, letting the nurses reattach his devices to monitor his vital signs. “Can I have somethin’ to eat or drink?” 

“Toast?” Marie asked, pulling up her normal seat next to him. 

“Yeah, with like a lot of butter.” He yawned, flexing his hand. “Goddamn, I shouldn’t’ve punched him.” 

“You were protecting me. It was self defense.” Marie replied, motioning for the others to come in. “Besides, there’s witnesses and cameras in case he wants to try something.” 

Guzma smiled weakly at Plumeria, who stood in the doorframe. “They give you the good stuff, boss?” he asked jokingly, motioning to his hand. 

“I guess?” He asked, tapping one of his IV tubes. “I mean, I don’t hurt but I feel like I’m suppose to?” 

“Yeah, you’re on the good stuff.” Mephiste laughed, reaching for his charts at the foot of the bed. 

“And you are?” Guzma asked, looking confused. 

“Her twin.” Mephiste gestured to Marie. “I’m Mephiste, and lemme tell you, you looked like hell when you were first brought in here. I’d be shocked if they didn’t give you the _best_ stuff.” 

Guzma just blinked, a lit slow from the medicine and being out for a couple of days. Marie picked up and asked the group, “Can you go home and give everyone the good news? I’d...I’m going to stay here for the night.” 

“Fine, but no sex.” Mephiste joked, leaving the room. “Don’t put the poor boy back into a coma once he got out of one.” 

“I swear, I’m gonna sew your mouth shut.” Marie groaned, watching as Plumeria smacked Mephiste upside the back of the head. The twin boy hiss in pain, shooting a look at Plumeria as he left. Jarvis was outside the room, waved at Marie, and left with the other two. She turned back to Guzma with a sheepish look on her face. “So uh...you missed a lot.” 

“I can tell.” He grinned, moving over in his bed. “C’mere. Lemme hold you.” 

“Guzma, your bed isn’t big enough.” Marie retorted, but her boyfriend already gripped her arm and pulled her in towards his chest. “...you big dummy, you had us all worried. Why did you ever go to that woman?” 

“Cause I needed the money.” He whispered softly. “I wanted to be a man and tell her about us, that I needed to cut out the sexual aspect of our partnership.” He tightened his grip on her as he continued, “I didn’t wanna come to you cause I was strapped. We were gonna run out of food, and I hate havin’ the kids go hungry. So I went to her to ask for a job and tell her that I had to cut the sex out cause I have you.” 

“...you’re a moron.” Marie sighed, nuzzling into his chest. 

“I’m your moron.” He corrected, feeling his neck. “Hey, where’s my chain at?” 

“Nanu took it the other day as evidence. There were fingerprints on it that weren’t mine or yours.” She murmured, reaching up to grab his fingers. “I’ve got another one on the way for you, love. Just relax, okay? I’m right here, wearing mine.” 

His fingers moved to her neck, feeling the cool chain. He relaxed a bit more, leaning back in the propped-up bed and sighed. “Good. Thank you.” He paused for a moment, pulling her chin to face him and kissed her quickly. “I love you, baby. I’m so sorry.” 

“I got your back. Always. Don’t forget it.” She whispered, kissing him back. “I love you, too. Get some rest. I’m sure the doctors are gonna want to poke at you and Nanu will be by later for questioning.” 

Guzma rolled his eyes, but settled in. Marie curled up against him, relaxed for the first time in days and feeling herself dozing off. She was falling into the back of her mind, where the sleepless nights feared her the most. Dreams of his moment - when Guzma finally had awoken - had been realized and, though they may not have been perfect circumstances, it eased her fears. So, here they were, two lovers sharing a hospital bed for a few quiet moments before the doctors came in. 

A few quiet moments for Marie to contemplate further in the dark side of her mind how to exactly punish the people who put her lover in this mess.


	13. Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“If this night is not forever, at least we are together.”_

She stared down at the glass full of alcohol, the swirling golden colors foaming at the top. Her vision was a little hazy, and her memory was fogy. How did she get here? Where was Guzma? She was just at home with him, settling down for their sleep. At what point did she-

“Heyya, girl!” 

She looked up, seeing the familiar face of a friend long dead. Sayla smiled at her, sliding into the booth across from her. Pieces were clicking into place as Jessie slid next to her wife, holding a yellow envelope. This was one of her memories, something Gengar would pull up from time to time when she was stressed. This was actually one of her happiest memories, their monthly celebration outing. Once a month, the group got together to share and celebrate milestones in their lives. And this night? One of the happiest….

Sayla smiled at Marie, her snakebite piercings were glinting in the pub light. Her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail, the rainbow colors blending and capturing the attention (good and bad) of passersby. Jessie rubbed her freckle colored face, a nervous tick when she was excited. Ginger red hair cut into a bob, framing her face. Marie just smiled, relaxing into the memory-dream, and deciding to fall into the pattern of the night. “How’re you ladies doing?” 

“Oh, we got big news alright!” Sayla laughed, pulling her wife into a hug. “Where’s your brother at?” 

“Ladies~” Mephiste sang his greeting, serving up a round of alcohol. “Glad you could show up tonight! I got everyone their usual shots!” He started placing small shot glasses, one per news per person. So, in total, 4 shots for everyone and a tall glass or bottle of their low-cost alcohol. No one walked away from the table at least a little bit tipsy. She missed these nights...perhaps she should suggest nights like these with Guzma? 

“Alright, who’s first?” Mephiste took a seat next to his sister, about 9 years younger and looking full of himself. This was before his then-partner left him, because he was caught in bed with someone else. She missed her brother, missed when he was loving and carefree with everyone. Now he just sat in his room running numbers, helping at the winery, and running his bar from afar. 

“I’ll go!” Marie laughed, picking up her shot. “Since everyone saw my latest gym match on the television.” 

“That we did!” Sayla laughed, grabbing her shot glass. The four of them clinked their small glasses, downing the first of the night. “Ooof! We need to start off with our beer first! God, that went down hard!” 

Jessie laughed at her wife, kissing her cheek. “You say that every time, but we never start off like that.” 

“You gotta remind me, you bitch!” Sayla teased her wife back, kissing her lovingly. Oh, how she adored them. The minute Jessie and Sayla met, she knew they were going to marry. Just seeing the overly-confident dark-skinned woman stumble over her words with the petite red-headed girl in braids and coke-bottle glasses. 

“Yeah, but you gotta tell us about the match!” Mephiste cooed, taking a swig of his malt liquor. “I mean, we saw it, but we still wanna hear about it.” 

“Not much to say.” Marie giggled, taking a drink herself of her beer. “I’m just happy that I don’t look stupid when I face the Champion in a few months.” She smiled, letting the cat out of the bag. 

“The Champ?” Sayla repeated, inching closer. “You got your invite?” 

“Right here, bitches!” Marie laughed, putting her an ivory colored card on the table with the Kalos League Elite Four stamp on it. “In 3 months, I’ll have my shot at the Champion Title!” 

“Hey, Steven!” Mephiste yelled across the bar to a burly lumberjack looking male who was running the evening. “Steve! Break out the good stuff! Round on the house! My sister’s going up against the Champion!” There was a loud round of whistles and applause, with people cheering louder when the bartender pulled out a couple bottles of Wild Strawberry Liqueur. 

“We’re taking extra shots!” Mephiste laughed, taking four more shots from a passing waitress. The group of friends took the shot, the initial burn of the high-percentage booze quickly being drowned by the delicious taste of wild strawberries. “Hot damn! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” 

“Cause, this is celebration night!” She teased, flipping her two shots upside down. “Alright, next!” 

“Oh, oh! Me!” Mephiste snickered. “Joe’s gonna take me to meet his parents!” 

“His really tight-ass conservative parents?” Sayla looked worried. “Mephy, is that a good idea?” 

“Nope!” Mephiste continued snickering. “I told Joe I’m gonna go all out. Cross-dressing and all! They’re gonna know how gay I am and like it!” 

“Um...cheers to that?” Marie sighed, taking another shot. Mephiste was known as a cross-dresser, and the back part of his bar featured drag shows from time to time. Drag kings, queens, and anyone in between. His bar was public about its sexual openness and promised a safe place for anyone of the LGBTQ+ community….except for anyone considered a MAP. Mephiste took a strict dislike to the “minor-attracted people” and reported anyone that was open about that to the police. 

“Alright, your turn.” Mephiste smiled, gesturing to Sayla. 

“Take your last two shots, cause this is on both of us!” Sayla cheered, downing her last two shots. “Honey, you wanna tell them?” 

The yellow envelope reappeared, and a photo was pulled out. Laying it face down, Jessie shyly smiled. “We got this in the mail a week ago and…” She flipped the image over, revealing a pregnancy photo, “ We got approved for adoption! We’re having a little girl in two months!”

The table erupted into tears of happiness, laughter, and words of congratulations. Mephiste lunged over the table to hug Jessie, and Sayla reached over to grab Marie’s hand as she picked up the photo and looked it over. There were tears, there were emotions bubbling over, and there was finally the question asked by Marie, “Did you pick out a name yet?” 

“We can’t decide.” Sayla smiled. “Jessie wasn’t to name her Annabelle. I’m thinking something like Gwen or Gale.” 

“....why not compromise?” Marie suggested. “Abigail?” 

“Abigail…” Jessie mouthed. “Hm...Abi...Gail…” She looked a little bit drunk, four shots into vodka and one shot into a strong Liquor. “I like that. Sayla, thoughts?” 

“Well, if the godmother suggests it and you like it, who am I to oppose?” She remarked, taking a swig of her drink. 

“Godmother?” Marie questioned, raising an eyebrow. 

“Yeah, yeah! We’re goin’ the the lawyers in a few weeks to draw up paperwork. Cause, ya know, the original Will is obsolete with a kid.” Jessie explained. “I think Sayla was gonna ask you to be God Mom but I guess we got that out tonight.” 

“....I’d be honored.” Marie smiled, raising her glass. “To Abigail!” 

The four friends, shots into their night and empty glasses on the table, ordered their usual bar food to accompany their empty stomach as they caught up from their last monthly celebration night. Marie was enjoying the moment, seeing her loved ones like this again. 

But the weight of her own hurt was too heavy to not say something. 

“Hey, Sayla?” She asked, breaking the memory. 

“Yeah, kid?” Sayla asked, stuffing her mouth full of fries. 

“I’m sorry.” Marie admitted, and time around them stopped. Her brain couldn’t process the memory now, and it left them hanging in the moment. Jessie was in the middle of drinking water, Mephiste was pausing wiping his mouth on the back of his sleeve. “I’m sorry. You should be here, with Abigail. Not me. I’m so sorry.” 

“...hey kiddo?” Sayla broke herself from time, setting down her drink. Her eyes looked sober, she looked like she hadn’t been drinking at all. “You blame yourself, still?” 

“Always.” Marie replied. “If I hadn’t been at that battle, you would’ve been at home with Jessie. You would’ve been enjoying being a mom, a wife, a family. I took that away from you.” 

“Were you driving that truck?” Sayla asked, reaching over. “Did you send him to kill us?” 

“No.” Marie whispered, feeling the table between them melt away. Her memory was fading, and so were Jessie and Mephiste. Leaving just her and Sayla, alone, in the vast white emptiness. “No, but I can’t-” 

“Kiddo.” Sayla interrupted, her street clothes replaced with a plain white shirt and white pants. “Hey, look at me.” 

Marie caught her gaze, those rainbow contact lenses looking back at her with love. “It's not your fault. I don’t blame you. Jessie doesn’t blame you. Stop blaming yourself, okay?” Those eyes filled with tears. “I love you. We love you, and we love Abi.” 

“I wish you could’ve met him.” Marie confessed, feeling herself crying. “I wish Abi could remember you! There’s so much I wish that could’ve happened, but it can’t!” 

“I know, kiddo.” Sayla wrapped her arms around Marie, pulling her tight for a hug. “I know.” 

“Don’t go!” Marie begged. “Please, don’t go! I’m afraid of waking up right now. Guzma’s next to me, and-and-and…” She started hiccupping. “I love you! Please…” 

“You gotta, kiddo.” Sayla whispered. “I know, it's hard without us. It’s hard, and you’re not sure if you’re doing the right thing. But, kiddo, I can tell you that you’re doing great. I would be crawling out my grave to come kick your ass if you weren’t.” She pressed her forehead against Marie’s. “Can you wake up again and tell Abi we love her?” 

“I don’t even know how to tell her about you!” Marie sobbed. “I’m horrible! I can’t even-” 

“Breathe.” Sayla cooed. “You’ll tell her when she’s ready. And you’ll know when that is, won’t you?” She wiped the tears from her friends face. “I’ll see you again someday. But you need to wake up now, Marie. Okay? Wake up, darling.” 

_“Wake up….”_

“Baby, please, wake up.” Guzma shook his girlfriend gently, and her eyes snapped open. Her fingers reached for his shirt, pulling herself up, and he instinctively held her close to his chest. “It's okay, it's okay. I got you. Ya boy’s got you.” 

“Sayla.” She panted, gripping at his shirt. “Guzma, Sayla-” 

“Shhh.” He murmured, using the edge of the blanket to rub the tears and snot off her. “Hey, not right now. You need to calm down. Gengar couldn’t wake you so whatever you were dreamin’ about must’ve been bad.” He rubbed her back as she hiccuped and nuzzled into his chest, muttering sweet words to her. 

She finally calmed down enough to notice the mess on his shirt. “I should get you a different tank for the night.” she whispered, trying to crawl out of bed. 

“You keep your ass in bed, missy.” He huffed, pushing her back into the bed. He simply stripped his shirt off, tossing it to the side. ‘Ya boy’s hot as fuck anyway.” 

She giggled at his display, waiting for him to lay next to her before taking the open-armed invitation to lay her head on his chest. “...I dreamed about being back in Kalos, before Sayla died.” she whispered. “Then it was..strange. Everything melted away and she kept telling me it wasn’t my fault.” 

“Its not.” Guzma yawned, rubbing her back. 

“I know, but-” 

“Its not your fault.” He repeated. “You didn’t drink and drive, you didn’t know what was going to happen, you didn’t do anything but love them as family.” He kissed her forehead, “You have Abi and me and the entire Team Skull at your back. We’re your family now, babe. You got us, yeah?” 

“I couldn’t protect them and I couldn’t protect you.” She felt the tears coming again. “What if I can’t protect Abi? What if I fail as a mom?” 

“Hey, stop that.” He huffed, thumbing away her fears. “Okay, they died. It was bad, and it was tragic, and it definitely was the worst way to go. Was it your fault? No. I got drugged and raped by Lusamine. It was horrible and I would never wish that on anyone I hated. Was it your fault? Hell no. Bad things happen, and you can’t be superwoman and try to protect everyone from everything.” 

She smiled at him, closing her eyes and leaning into his chest. “Now, you know I love you, babe. Abi loves you, the whole Squad calls you their Ma. You’re doin’ incredible things for us, and I wish you could see how I look at you.” 

“...thanks, G. I love you too.” She murmured, peeking up at him. “I needed that, honestly.” 

“I’ll be here to tell you whenever you need it.” He kissed her head, holding her close. “Get back to sleep or else I’m gonna count all the ways I love you until you do.” 

“Fine, fine.” She chuckled, relaxing in his arms. It was nice knowing that she wasn’t alone, not anymore. Back in Kalos the overwhelming paparazzi and lack of close friends made her feel that way, but in Alola she had neither. She had Guzma, Plumeria, and an entire clique of scandalous teens who looked up to her as a role model. She was regaining her sanity, and that alone was worth the move.


End file.
